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THE 
 
 PUBLIC LETTBES 
 
 OF 
 
 THE RIGHT HON. 
 
 JOHN BEIGHT, M.P. 
 
LONDON: 
 
 PBINTED BT GII-BBBT AND EIVINQTON, LIMITED, 
 
 ST. JOHN'S SQTTAEE. 
 
THE 
 
 PUBLIC LETTEES 
 
 CP 
 
 THE RIGHT HO:^. 
 
 JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 
 
 COLLECTED AND EDITED BY 
 
 H. J'. LEECH. 
 
 \8 RA 
 
 Of T>fE 
 
 VNIVERSITY 
 
 ILontJon : 
 SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON", SEARLE, & RIVINGTON, 
 
 CROWN BUILDINGS, 183, FLEET STREET. 
 
 1885. j|ir; 
 
 [All rights reserved.'] 
 
/ 
 
 ^■ 
 
 
 spfifc/fa 
 
PEEFACE. 
 
 This collection of letters, which Mr. Bright has 
 written during his political career, has been 
 obtained by a search through the files of several 
 newspapers. Covering a space, as it does, of 
 tive-and-thirty years, many of the letters it con- 
 tains will bo new to the bulk of the public ; and 
 although this can hardly be claimed for a large 
 portion of the letters, it may be submitted that 
 they are all valuable communications, worthy 
 of being collected and arranged so as to be 
 available for reference and for general perusal. 
 
 Most of the letters deal with political ques- 
 tions. The collection would have been sim- 
 plified if it had included such communications 
 only; but in that case some very interesting 
 letters of a public, though not of a political, 
 nature would have had to be omitted, and it 
 has seemed to me a better course to insert every 
 letter I could find. 
 
 An exception to this rule has been made in 
 
 1 ' 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 the case of the letters included in tlie Brougham 
 correspondence of 1843. On the 15th of Feb- 
 ruary in that year Lord Brougham wrote to 
 Mr. Bright, asking for a disclaimer of the 
 *' atrocious falsehood'' published in the Anti- 
 Bread-Tax Circular, to the effect that he had 
 importuned a League deputation to entrust 
 him with a motion in the House of Lords. Mr. 
 Bright, in reply, defended the League gene- 
 rally, and disavowed the authorship of the 
 report. A correspondence, consisting of three 
 letters on either side, followed ; but as the 
 whole of the correspondence relates principally 
 to the charges which had been brought against 
 Lord Brougham in the Anti-Bread- Tax Circular, 
 I have not considered it necessary to include it 
 in this volume. 
 
 A special interest attaches to these letters 
 from the fact that, with the exception of his 
 speeches, they are the only medium Mr. Bright 
 has used for bringing his opinions before the 
 world. He has neither written books nor con- 
 tributed to reviews, and it is to his letters that 
 we have to look for whatever of literary effort 
 he has put forth. 
 
 I have to express my indebtedness to Mr. 
 Thomas Moss, of Levenshulme, Manchester, 
 who had made a collection of Mr. Bright' s 
 letters from the newspapers for several years, 
 
PREFACE, vii 
 
 and who, hearing of what I was doing, readily 
 placed his list at my disposal, and thus enabled 
 me to indude in this collection a number of 
 letters I had failed to find. I also desire to 
 acknowledge the assistance of my friend, Mr. J. 
 Irlam, of Walkden, Lancashire, by whom the 
 idea of making the collection was first sug- 
 gested to me, and who has rendered me con- 
 siderable help in the work* 
 
 I think it necessary to state, in justice to 
 Mr. Bright, that he is in no degree responsible 
 for the publication of this volume. He has, it 
 is true, given his consent to it, but so far from 
 his having originated the work in any way, the 
 collection was made and completed before any 
 communication on the subject was made to him. 
 Appreciation of the style and contents of the 
 letters, and regard for the character and services 
 of Mr. Bright, have led to the production of the 
 book, and it is given to the world in the belief 
 that it will prove an acceptable addition to the 
 literature of the country ; comprising, as it 
 does, the written declarations of one who is 
 confessedly a master of the English language, 
 and containing ideas which have helped to 
 mould the political thought of a nation. 
 
 H. J. Leech. 
 
 Manchester J January 17, 1885. 
 
ft 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Foreign Policy. July 3, 1850 .... 
 The Irish Church Question. October 25, 1852 . 
 The War with Russia. April 18, 1854 . 
 To Mr. Absalom Watkin. October 29, 1854 . 
 On the Eepresentation of Manchester. ]S"oveniber 5 
 
 1856 
 
 On losing his Seat for Manchester. March 31, 1857 
 Reform. May 17, 1857 ..... 
 On his being elected a Member for Birmingham 
 
 August 10, 1857 : . . . . 
 On being asked to subscribe to a Bazaar. August, 
 
 1857 
 
 The Government of India. December 2, 1857 . 
 Reform — The Necessity of a Redistribution of Seats 
 
 and the Ballot. February 1, 1858 
 Mr. Milner Gibson. January 20, 1858 
 \Ahe Conspiracy Bill. February 12, 1858 . 
 C/^he Conspiracy Bill. March 1, 1858 
 The Condition of the Country. March 25, 1858 
 The Representation of Birmingham. May 26, 1858 
 The Necessity for Emigration and its Causes. Sup 
 
 tember 1, 1858 
 
 The Currency. January 12, 1859 ... 
 Reform— Mr. Bright's Reform Bill. April 9, 1859 
 
 PAOB 
 1 
 5 
 
 22 
 26 
 
 36 
 39 
 42 
 
 44 
 
 46 
 47 
 
 49 
 56 
 57 
 59 
 61 
 62 
 
 63 
 
 68 
 69 
 
g C0N2ENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Government of India. January 14, 1860 . . 75 
 Kj^Strikes, and the Exclusion of the Working Classes 
 
 from the Suffrage. November 3, 1860 
 1 /The Income-Tax, and Taxation and Representation. 
 March 11, 1862 
 The Income-Tax. March 21, 1862 . 
 V^The United States. April 4, 1862 . . 
 Mr. Rubery's Case, January 6, 1864 
 The Malt-Tax. April 11, 1864 
 The Licensing System. June 13, 1864 
 Irish Questions. December 22, 1864 
 v'Reform. May 15, 1865 . . . . 
 
 The United States and Canada. June 10, 1865 
 "^ Reform — Lord Palmerston and Reform. September 
 
 10, 1865 
 
 The G-ame Laws. September 30, 1865 
 Jrish Affairs. March 3, 1866 .... 
 V Reform— The Reform Bill of 1866. March 25, 1866 
 v'^he Reform Bill of 1866. May 19, 1866 . 
 \>/^ The Hyde Park Demonstration in 1866. July 19, 
 
 1866 
 
 On receiving an Invitation to a Banquet in Dublin. 
 September 1, 1866 ..... 
 y / On an Anticipated Visit to Ireland. September 27, 
 
 1866 
 
 ■ Mr. Garth's Libels. December 24, 1866 . 
 - >i Reform — The Reform Resolutions of 1867. February 
 
 16, 1867 
 
 • The Reform Resolutions of 1867. February 18, 1867 
 .The Reform Bill of 1867. March 19, 1867 
 Three- Cornered Constituencies. July 31, 1867. 
 The Ballot. August 18, 1867 .... 
 Refonn — Redistribution and the Ballot. September 
 
 29, 1867 
 
 The Irish Land Question. November 11, 1867 . 
 
C0NTEN2S, 
 
 XI 
 
 lX 
 
 Irish Questions. January 27, 1868 . 
 Three-Comered Constituencies. August 1, 1868 
 The House of Lords. June 9, 1869 . . . 
 On becoming President of the Board of Trade. Do 
 
 cember 9, 1868 
 
 Free Trade and Tory Pamphleteers. September 8 
 
 1869 
 
 Home Eule. January 20, 1872 
 
 The Eepresentation of Birmingham. January 27 
 
 1872 
 
 The Income-Tax. March 4, 1872 . 
 Republicanism. April 7, 1872 .... 
 Free Trade — The French Commercial Treaty of 1872 
 
 November 22, 1872 .... 
 \/ The Birmingham Conservative Working Men's Mutual 
 
 Improvement Association. February 28, 1873 
 On the Use of Indian Corn in England. October 10 
 
 1873 
 
 Free Land. Xovember 2, 1873 
 The Licensing System. November 27, 1873 
 The "Residuum." December 9, 1873 
 The American Jubilee Singers. December 23, 1873 , 
 Extempore Speaking and Preaching. January, 187^^ 
 The Liberal Party. March 2, 1874 . 
 Mr. Charles Sumner. April 4, 1874. 
 The Civil Service. April 29, 1874 . 
 Tempei-ance. June 5, 1874. 
 Temperance. June 6, 1874 
 Vaccination. October 6, 1874 . 
 Free Trade in Relation to the Price of Food. Octo- 
 ber 12, 1874 
 
 Canvassing at Elections. October 26, 1874 
 Sunday Closing in Ireland. October 27, 1874 . 
 Secret Voting in Representative Bodies, January 1 2 
 
 1875 
 
 PA OB 
 
 140 
 145 
 145 
 
 147 
 
 148 
 149 
 
 150 
 151 
 152 
 
 153 
 
 156 
 
 159 
 
 160 
 
 161 
 
 163 
 
 165 
 
 166 ^: 
 
 168 
 
 169 
 
 170 
 
 171 ^ 
 
 173 
 
 174 
 
 175 
 176 
 177 
 
 178 
 
xii • CONTENTS. 
 
 . PAGH 
 
 t/Working-Men Candidates. February 13, 1875 . . 179 
 j//Home Eule. February 25, 1875 .... 181 
 The Tichborne Case. July 15, 1875 .... 183 
 The Foreign Cattle Trade. September 3, 1875 . . 186 
 Funeral Reform. October 26, 1875 .... 188 
 Sunday Closing in Ireland. November 27, 1875 . 188 
 The Eastern Question — Turkish Rule in Europe. Sep- 
 tember 1, 1876 189 
 
 The Eastern Question — The Policy of England towards 
 
 Turkey. September 30, 1876 // . . .191 
 
 ^Peace and War. September 22, 1«76 . . .193 
 
 •)fWar. November 25, 1876 . . . . .195 
 
 Mr. Joseph Kay. April 11, 1877 .... 196 
 
 Parliamentary Reporting. April 21, 1877. . . 198 
 
 Free Trade — A Protective Policy in the English 
 
 Colonies. July 31, 1877 199 
 
 JiKindness to Animals. November 22, 1877 . . 203 
 Consecrated Ground. November 23, 1877 . .203 
 India — The Indian Import and Excise Duties. Feb- 
 ruary 7, 1878 205 
 
 i^^Free Trade and Armaments. March 18, 1878 . . 207 
 Irish Members of Parliament in Relation to the Liberal 
 
 Party. April 4, 1878 209 
 
 The Foreign Policy of Lord Beaconsfield's Government. 
 
 May 2, 1878 210 
 
 The Liberal Party in Accrington. May 4, 1878 . 212 
 
 The Foreign Policy of Lord Beaconsfield's Government. 
 
 May, 1878 . 213 
 
 The Liquor Traffic and the Tory Party. September 4, 
 
 1878 . , . " 214 
 
 l^he Prevention of War. September 23, 1878 . . 216 
 
 The Liquor Traffic. October 7, 1878 . . .218 
 
 The " Virtuous Poor." November, 1878 . . .219 
 
 ^Protection in the United States. January 21, 1879 . 222 
 
 Juvenile Smoking. February, 1879 . . , . 223 
 
CONTENTS. xiii 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Perpetual Pensions, Septennial Parliaments, and the 
 
 Beaconsfield Government. March 11, 1879 . 224 
 Tory Misrepresentation. March 28, 1879 . . . 226 
 The Condition of England under Free Trade. April 1, 
 
 1879 227 
 
 Free Trade and the Depression in Trade in 1879. 
 
 May, 1879 228 
 
 The Depression in Trade in 1879 and its Causes. 
 
 June 26, 1879 231 
 
 Free Trade — Its Progress and Results. August 1, 1879 233 
 Canadian Policy. August 16, 1879 . . . . 236 
 
 War. August 18, 1879 238 ^ 
 
 The Game Laws. November 16, 1879 . . . 239 
 The Study of Political Questions. November 17, 1879 241 " 
 The Crimean War. December 13, 1879 . . .242 
 Fagot Voting. December 20, 1879 . . . .243 
 Eeading the Bible in Board Schools. February 20, 1880 244 
 The Trade between England and the United States. 
 
 January 3, 1880 245 
 
 The Beaconsfield Government. March, 1880 . . 246 
 Three-Cornered Constituencies. July, 1880 . . 247 
 On being elected Lord Rector of Glasgow University. 
 
 November 22, 1880 248' 
 
 Monarchs, Aristocracy, and Landowners. December 25, 
 
 1880 249 
 
 Tory Clergy. January 11, 1881 . . . . 251 ^ 
 The Policy of the Gladstone Government in the Trans- 
 vaal, and on the Hon. James Lowther. February, 
 
 1881 252 
 
 The Transvaal Peace. March 14, 1881 . . . 253^ 
 The Transvaal Peace. March 23, 1881 . . .254 
 Free Trade — Mr. Hermon's Protective Proposals. 
 
 March 18, 1881 255 
 
 Free Trade — The French, and American Tariffs. 
 
 March 29, 1881 257 
 
xiv CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Reciprocity. April 15, 1881 260 
 
 Liberal Rule. April, 1881 262 
 
 The French Treaty. August 10, 1881 . . .263 
 The Irish Land Bill of 1881. August 19, 1881 . 264 
 
 Reciprocity. September 2, 1881 .... 26o 
 Free Trade. November 20, 1881 .... 266 
 On completing his Seventieth Year. December 13, 
 
 1881 267 
 
 National Expenditure. February, 1882 . . .268 
 Slavery in the United States. March 8, 1882 . . 269 
 The Salvation Army. May 3, 1882 . . . . 270 
 
 ^The War in Egypt. September 25, 1882 . . .271 
 The Rules of Procedure. October 19, 1882 . . 273 
 On completing his Seventy-First Year. November 21, 
 
 1882 274 
 
 On an Invitation being sent to Mr. Bright to visit 
 
 America. January 16, 1883 .... 275 
 The Oaths Question. February 14, 1883 . . .278 
 The Income Tax. April 6, 1883 .... 279 
 Tlie Ma.rriage Laws. May 7, 1883 .... 280 
 The Government of India. August 25, 1883 . . 281 
 
 ^The Work of Luther. September 3, 1883 . . 282 
 
 The Future of Ireland. October 4, 1883 . . .283 
 Election Fads. October 8, 1883 . . . . 284 
 Election Fads — Mr. Hare's Scheme. October 16, 1883 286 
 Protection in Young Countries. November 20, 1883 287 
 
 Vaccination. December, 1883 290 
 
 The Factory Acts. January 1, 1884 . . .292 
 
 ^War. February 13, 1884 292 
 
 The Land Laws. February 27, 1884 . . . 293 
 
 ^America, Peace, and War. March 10, 1884 . . 295 
 
 Fair Trade. April 1, 1884 297 
 
 A Llandudno Pensioner. April, 1884 . . . 300 
 
 Free Trade and Depressed Industries. June 19, 1884 300 
 The House of Lords. July 18, 1884 . , . 303 
 
CONTENTS. XV 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Lord Salisbury's Misrepresentation of Mr. Bright's 
 
 Views. October 9, 1884 . . . . . 304 
 The Sunday Postal Delivery. October 23> 1884 . 306 
 
 Integrity in Business. November, 1884 . . .308 
 Indian Government. November, 1884 . . . 309 "JL 
 The Eesults of Free Trade in England. November 17, 
 
 1884 311 
 
 Land and its Eent. December 19, 1884 . . .315 
 A Conservative Candidate's Speech. December 27, 
 
 1884 320 
 
 The Liberal Party in Relation to Agricultural La- 
 bourers. December 29, 1884 . . . . 323 
 
 Addendum. 
 Address to the Working Men of Rochdale. August, 
 
 1842 331 
 
\ 
 
/X \ BRA r^ 
 f OF THE 
 
 I UNIVERSITY J 
 
 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 EIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 
 
 ERRATA. 
 
 Fa^e 226, line 1,/orOUR TORY MISREPRESENTATION 
 read ON TORY MISREPRESENTATION. 
 
 Faffe 285, line 13, for Mr. John Bright read Mr. Bright. 
 
 z'i<in ot dune, i»DU. it nad reterence to the 
 foreign policy of the Government, of which 
 Lord John Eussell was Premier and Lord 
 Palmerston Foreign Secretary, and was as 
 follows: — ''That the principles which have 
 hitherto regulated the foreign policy of her 
 Majesty's Government are such as were required 
 to preserve untarnished the honour and dignity 
 of this country, and at all times best calculated 
 to maintain peace between this country and the 
 various nations of the world." Mr. Roebuck 
 moved this resolution as a vote of confidence in 
 the Government in reply to an adverse vote in 
 
 ^6 ■ " 
 
f OF THE 
 
 ( UNIVERSITY \ 
 
 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 or THE 
 
 EIGHT HON. JOHN HEIGHT, M.P. 
 
 ON FOEEIGN POLICY. 
 
 Addeessed to one of Mr. Briglit's constituents, 
 wlio had written to him expressing his dis- 
 approval of his vote against Mr. Roebuck's 
 resolution on the foreign policy of the Russell 
 Government. 
 
 Mr. Roebuck's resolution was moved on the 
 24th of June, 1850. It had reference to the 
 foreign policy of the Government, of which 
 Lord John Russell was Premier and Lord 
 Palmerston Foreign Secretary, and was as 
 follows : — ' ' That the principles which have 
 hitherto regulated the foreign policy of her 
 Majesty's Government are such as were required 
 to preserve untarnished the honour and dignity 
 of this country, and at all times best calculated 
 to maintain peace between this country and the 
 various nations of the world." Mr. Roebuck 
 moved this resolution as a vote of confidence in 
 the Government in reply to an adverse vote in 
 
2 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 the House of Lords, on the 17th of June, on 
 Lord Stanley's motion, censuring the Govern- 
 ment for undue interference in the affairs of 
 Greece. The debate in the Commons lasted 
 four nights. It was remarkable for the brilliant 
 defence which Lord Palmerston made for his 
 policy, and ended in a majority of forty-six for 
 the Government. Among those who spoke in 
 support of the Government was Mr. Alexander 
 Cockburn, afterwards Lord Chief Justice, and 
 the most notable speeches against the resolu- 
 tion were those of Mr. Gladstone and Sir 
 Eobert Peel. The latter spoke on this occasion 
 for the last time in the House of Commons. 
 On the following day the lamentable accident 
 occurred which terminated his life. 
 
 London, July 3, 1850. 
 
 Sir, — I have your letter of yesterday, and 
 regret to find that my vote on a recent occasion 
 has not been such as to meet your views. I 
 cannot, of course, expect on all occasions to 
 find myself in harmony with all the electors of 
 Manchester ; but I am most anxious that my 
 votes should be found in accordance with my 
 honest convictions and with the sentiments I 
 expressed in Manchester before and at my 
 election. 
 
 The question at issue in the . late debate was 
 mainly this : Shall the foreign minister of this 
 country be permitted to interfere in the affairs 
 of other countries in cases where the direct 
 interests of the country do not require it? 
 Shall he advise, and warn, and meddle in 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M,P. 3 
 
 matters wliich concern only the domestic and 
 internal affairs of other countries ? I say that 
 such a policy necessarily leads to irritation, and 
 to quarrels with other nations, and may lead 
 even to war ; and that it involves the necessity 
 of maintaining greater armaments, and a heavier 
 expenditure and taxation than would otherwise 
 be required. It is a policy, therefore, which I 
 cannot support under any pretence whatever. It 
 is contrary to all I have ever declared in the Free 
 Trade Hall, and in the many speeches in which 
 I have touched upon this subject ; and it is con- 
 trary to the principles on which I was elected. 
 
 With regard to the particular vote, I have 
 only to say that, in giving it, I followed my 
 own convictions, and acted upon opinions long 
 since and constantly avowed. I venture to 
 think that no good could arise to Manchester 
 from its representatives acting on any other 
 principle ; and I would not, for a moment, sit 
 in parliament for Manchester, or for any other 
 constituency, if it was to be understood that I 
 am to forget my own character and long-held 
 principles, and what I believe to be the true 
 interests of the country, to abandon all these, 
 and vote as the necessities of party may require, 
 at the crack of the treasury whip. 
 
 You speak of an alhance with Lord Stanley, 
 and seem to forget that the resolution on which 
 I voted was moved by Mr. Eoebuck, a friend of 
 the present Government. It was not a reso- 
 lution condemning the Government, mov6^ by 
 an opponent, but a resolution approving the 
 Government policy, moved by one of their 
 
 B 2 
 
4 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 friends. I was asked to approve it ; honestly, 
 I could not do it. You may say that I might 
 have been absent ; but the question appeared 
 to me of so grave a character, that I felt I 
 could not shrink from deciding upon it. I took 
 the only honest and manly course, and I am 
 prepared to abide the consequences. To repre- 
 sent Manchester, on such terms as an indepen- 
 dent mind can accept, is a position of honour 
 which I hope I can fully appreciate ; but to sit 
 in Parliament as the mere instrument of i^ariy 
 is no object of hope or ambition with me. 
 
 It is possible my conduct may be blamed, 
 and my motives called in question by some, 
 but I will rely with confidence on all I have 
 done in public life during the last ten years as 
 my answer to those who suppose me careless 
 of the interests of freedom, whether at home or 
 abroad. I have the satisfaction, too, of having 
 voted with my colleague in the representation 
 of Manchester,^ and of his judgment, and prin- 
 ciples, and political honesty, I have the highest 
 opinion. I voted, too, with Mr. Cobden, whom 
 few men will suspect of a want of political 
 sagacity, or a disregard of the true interests of 
 Hberty and of his country. I voted, too, with 
 Mr. Hume, of whose character and labours for 
 the pubhc welfare I need say nothing. I voted, 
 too, with that statesman,^ since then so sud- 
 denly taken from amongst us, whose good dis- 
 position towards the existing Government none 
 could doubt, and whose sacrifices in recent years 
 
 ^ Mr. T. Milner Gibson. 
 
 2 Sir Robert Peel. Died July 2, 1850. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 5 
 
 have been sucli as to make his name sacred 
 among his countrymen, and if on this point 
 there be any distinction among them, most 
 of all to be revered by the inhabitants of your 
 city. 
 
 I am fortified, then, by the association of 
 men for whose judgment, and principles, and 
 character, I have the most profound regard, — 
 by the knowledge that 1 have acted in accord- 
 ance with every pledge, and with every opinion 
 expressed in times past to my constituents, — 
 and more than all by the consciousness that my 
 vote has been recorded against a policy cal- 
 culated to engender ill-will between nations, 
 and therefore, in reality, hostile to the true 
 interests of liberty, both at home and abroad. 
 
 I have not the pleasure of being personally 
 acquainted with you, but as you are the only 
 person, among all the constituency of Man- 
 chester, who has written to me in condemnation 
 of my vote, I take th6 liberty of writing to you 
 at some length, in justification of the course I 
 have taken. 
 
 I am, very respectfully, 
 
 John Bkight. 
 
 To Mr. John Heywood, Manchester. 
 
 ON THE IRISH CHURCH QUESTIOl^. 
 
 Addressed to Dr. Gray, Editor of the ^ree- 
 man's Journal, afterwards Sir John Gray, M.P. 
 
 Eochdale, October 25, 1852. 
 
 My dear Dr. Gray, — I observe from the 
 
6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 newspapers that the friends of "religious 
 equality" in Ireland are about to hold a con- 
 ference in the city of Dublin with a view to 
 consider the existing ecclesiastical arrange- 
 ments of your country. My engagements will 
 not permit me to be present at your delibera- 
 tions, and, indeed, I am not sure that your 
 invitations extend further than to Irishmen and 
 Irish representatives ; but I feel strongly dis- 
 posed to address you on the great question you 
 are about to discuss — a question affecting the 
 policy and interests of the United Kingdom, 
 but of vital importance to Ireland. 
 
 Let me say, in the first place, that I am 
 heartily glad that any number of the Irish 
 representatives should have resolved to grapple 
 with a question which, in my opinion, must be 
 settled on some just basis, if Ireland is ever to 
 become tranquil and content. The case of the 
 Catholic population of Ireland — and, in truth, 
 it is scarcely more their case than that of 
 every intelligent and just Protestant in the 
 three kingdoms — is so strong, so unanswerable, 
 and so generally admitted, that nothing is 
 wanting to ensure its complete success but the 
 combination of a few able and honest men to 
 concentrate and direct the opinion which exists. 
 If such men are to be found among you — re- 
 solute, persevering, and disinterested — a great 
 work is before them, and as certainly a great 
 result. They will meet with insult and 
 calumny in abundance ; every engine of the 
 '' supremacy " party will be in motion against 
 them j they will be denounced as " conspira- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 7 
 
 tors " against tlie institutions of the country, 
 when, in fact, they combine only against a grie- 
 vance which it is hard to say whether it is 
 more humiliating in Ireland to endure, or dis- 
 graceful in England to inflict ; but against all 
 this, having a right cause, and working it by 
 right means, they will certainly succeed. 
 
 It would be to insult your understanding 
 were I to imagine that you demand anything 
 more or less than a perfect " equality " before 
 the law for the religious sects which exist 
 in Ireland — that is, for the members or adhe- 
 rents of the Protestant Episcopalian, the Pres- 
 byterian, and the Eoman Catholic Churches. 
 So entirely is it felt that you are in the right 
 in making this demand, that with regard to it 
 your opponents dare not attempt an argument 
 with you ; they prefer to say that you claim 
 something else — namely, a supremacy as hate- 
 ful as their own, and then they find it easy to 
 contest the matter with you, writing and 
 speaking as they do chiefly to a Protestant 
 audience. On this point there should be no 
 possibility of mistake ; and not only should the 
 demand for equality be unequivocal, but it 
 appears to me most desirable that some mode 
 of attaining it should be distinctly pointed out. 
 We may, perhaps, imagine an '' equality " which 
 would allow the Protestant Establishment to 
 remain as it is, or, at least, to continue to be a 
 State Church, building up at its side a Catholic 
 Establishment ; and, to complete the scheme, 
 a Presbyterian Establishment also, having a 
 batch of Catholic prelates and of Presbyterian 
 
8 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 divines in the House of Lords; but, in my 
 opinion, any scheme of " equahty " of this 
 description would be, and must necessarily be, 
 altogether impracticable. 
 
 Lord John Kussell, I think in 1843, expressed 
 an opinion that the Protestant Church in Ireland 
 should not be subverted, " but that the Roman 
 Catholic Church, with its bishops and clergy, 
 should be placed by the State on a footing of 
 equality with that Church." He adopted the 
 term " equality," and said that any plan he 
 should propose would be "to follow out that 
 principle of equality with all its consequences." 
 Lord Grey, in 1845, was, if possible, still more 
 explicit, for he said, after expressing his opinion 
 that ''the Catholics have the first claim" on 
 the funds applied to ecclesiastical purposes in 
 Ireland, " you must give the Catholic clergy an 
 equality also in social rank and position;" and 
 he went ever further than this, and said, "I carry 
 my view on this subject as far as to wish to 
 see the prelates of the Roman Catholic Church 
 take their places in this House on the episcopal 
 bench." From this it appears that Lord John 
 Russell and Lord Grey, seeing the enormous 
 evil of the existing system, were ready to justify 
 almost any measure that promised political and 
 ecclesiastical equality, to be obtained without 
 the subversion of the Protestant Established 
 Church in Ireland. 
 
 Of course, if all parties among the statesmen 
 and the public of the United Kingdom were 
 agreed, funds might be provided for the per- 
 petual endowment and subjection to State 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. g 
 
 control of the Irish Catholic and Presbyterian 
 Churches, and some plan might be devised to 
 secure them a representation in the House of 
 Lords; but, happily for sound principles in 
 civil government, and happily for religion itself, 
 all parties are not agreed to do this, but are 
 rather agreed that it shall not be done. The 
 " equality " which Lord John Russell would 
 " follow out with all its consequences " is a 
 dream, and Lord Grey's bold idea of giving the 
 Irish Catholics ''the first claim to the funds" 
 and of placing their bishops in the House of 
 Lords is not less impracticable. To have two 
 Established Churches in Ireland, the one Pro- 
 testant and the other Catholic ; to have in 
 the House of Lords Protestant and Catholic 
 bishops, elbowing each other on ''the right 
 reverend bench," guarding the temporal and 
 spiritual interests of two Churches which de- 
 nounce each other as idolatrous or heretical,would 
 be an inconsistency so glaring, that it would go 
 far to overthrow all reverence for Governments 
 and Churches, if not for Christianity itself. 
 The scheme is surely too absurd to be seriously 
 thought of, and if there be a statesman bold 
 enough to propose it, he will find no support in 
 the opinion of the English public, except from 
 that small section with whom religion goes for 
 nothing, and churches and priests are tolerated 
 as machinery in the pay and service of the 
 Government. 
 
 But there is an " equality " which is attain- 
 able without inconsistency, which would meet 
 with favour among large classes in every part 
 
lo THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 of Great Britain, and which, I think, if fairly 
 proposed, would be well received by many of 
 the more enlightened and just Protestants in 
 Ireland. It is an " equality " which must start 
 from this point, that henceforth there must be 
 no Church in Ireland in connection with the 
 State. The whole body of English Dissenters, 
 the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland, 
 and the Catholic population of the United 
 Kingdom, might be expected cordially to wel- 
 come such a proposition ; and it is difficult to 
 understand how the Presbyterians of the north 
 of Ireland, or the Free Church of Scotland, or 
 the adherents of the Wesley an Conference in 
 England, could, with any consistency or de- 
 cency, oppose it ; and I am confident that a 
 large number of persons connected with the 
 Established Churches in the three kingdoms, 
 who are enlightened enough to see what is 
 right, and just enough to wish it to be done, 
 would give their support to any Minister who 
 had the courage to make such a measure the 
 great distinguishing act of his administration. 
 But if this principle were adopted — that is, the 
 principle that henceforth there must be no 
 Church in Ireland in connection with the State 
 — there would still be a question as to the ap- 
 propriation of the large funds now in the hands 
 of the Irish Established Church. 
 
 There are two modes of dealing with these 
 funds, either of which may be defended, but 
 one of them seems to offer facilities which do 
 not belong to the other. The most simple plan 
 would be to absorb the revenues of the Esta- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. ii 
 
 blished Church, as the livings become vacant, 
 and to apply them in some channel not eccle- 
 siastical, in which the whole population of 
 Ireland could participate. The objections to 
 this plan are, that it would be hard upon the 
 Protestant Episcopalians, after having pam- 
 pered them so long with a munificent support, 
 to throw them at once on their resources ; and 
 that to withdraw the Begium Donum from 
 the Presbyterians of the North, when they have 
 no other provision made for their religious 
 wants, would be to create a just discontent 
 among them. There is some force in this, in- 
 asmuch as upon one generation would be thrown 
 the burden of the creation and support of a 
 religious organization which, in voluntary 
 churches, is commonly the work of successive 
 generations of their adherents, and the argu- 
 ment may be considered almost irresistible when 
 it is offered to a Government which does not 
 repudiate, but rather cherishes, the principle 
 of a State Church. But, whatever may be the 
 inconveniencies of this plan, they are, in my 
 estimation, infinitely less than those which are 
 inseparable from a continuance of the present 
 system. 
 
 There is, however, another mode of settle- 
 ment which, though open to some objection, is 
 probably more likely to obtain a general con- 
 currence of opinion in its favour in Ireland, 
 and to which, I think, a great amount of con- 
 sent might be obtained in England and Scot- 
 land. Your present ecclesiastical arrangements 
 are briefly these : The Protestant Episcopal 
 
12 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 Church has 500,000?. per annum intrusted to 
 it, or a principal sum, at twenty years' pur- 
 chase, of 10,000,000L sterling. The Presby- 
 terian Church or Churches have 40,000L per 
 annum, or, estimated at the same rate, a prin- 
 cipal sum of 800,000?. The Roman Catholic 
 Church has 26,000Z. per annum, or a principal 
 sum of 520,000?. I will say nothing about the 
 exact proportions of population belonging to 
 each Church, for I do not wish to give oppor- 
 tunity for dispute about figures. It is suffi- 
 cient to say, what everybody knows to be true, 
 that the Irish population is Catholic, and that 
 the Protestants, whether of the Episcopalian or 
 Presbyterian Church, or of both united, are a 
 small minority of the Irish people. I will admit 
 the temporary hardship of at once withdraw- 
 ing from the Protestant sects all the resources 
 which the State has hitherto provided for them; 
 but, at the same time, no one can deny, and I 
 cannot forget, the hardship to which the Catho- 
 lics have been subjected, inasmuch as they, the 
 poorest portion of the people, and by many 
 times the most numerous, have been shut out 
 from almost all participation in the public 
 funds applied to ecclesiastical purposes in Ire- 
 land. Is it not possible to make an arrange- 
 ment by which the menaced hardship to the 
 Protestants may be avoided, and that so long 
 endured by the Catholics, in part at least, re- 
 dressed ? And can this be done without de- 
 parting from the principle, " that henceforth 
 there must be no Church in Ireland in connec- 
 tion with the State ? " Let an Act be passed 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 13 
 
 to establish a " Church Property Commission " 
 for Ireland, and let this Commission hold in 
 trust, for certain purposes, all the tithes and 
 other property now enjoyed by the Established 
 Church; let it, in fact, become possessed of 
 the 10,000,000Z. sterling, the income from which 
 now forms the revenues of that Church, as the 
 livings and benefices become vacant. It would 
 be desirable to offer facilities to the landed 
 proprietors to purchase the tithes at an easy 
 rate, in order that funds might be in hand 
 to carry out the other arrangements of the 
 scheme. 
 
 I have estimated the total valueat 10,000,000/.; 
 it might not reach that sum if the tithes were 
 soldatalow rate; butwhether it were 10,000,000/. 
 or only 8,000,000/. would not affect the prac- 
 ticability or the justice of this proposition. Let 
 this Commission be empowered and directed to 
 appropriate certain portions of this fund as a 
 free gift to each of .the three Churches in Ire- 
 land — to the Protestant Episcopalian, the 
 Presbyterian, and the Eoman Catholic Church. 
 Whatever is thus given must be a free gift, 
 and become as much the private property of the 
 respective sects or Churches as is the property 
 of the Free Church in Scotland, or that of the 
 Wesleyan Methodists in England. It must no 
 longer be a trust from the State, liable to 
 interference or recall by the State, or the 
 " equality " and independence of the Irish sects 
 will not be secured. 
 
 There comes now the question of the amounts 
 to be thus given. From some inquiries I have 
 
14 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 made I have arrived at the conclusion that if 
 in each parish in Ireland there was a house and 
 a small piece of land, say from ten to twenty 
 acres, in the possession of the E-oman Catholic 
 Church, that would be all the provision that 
 would be required or wished for, as the general 
 support of its ministers would be derived, as 
 at present, from the voluntary contributions 
 their flocks. There are, in round numbers, 
 about 1000 parishes in Ireland. In many of 
 them there is now a provision up to the standard 
 above stated in the possession of the Eoman 
 Catholic Church, but I will assume that in all 
 of them such provision would have to be made. 
 One thousand pounds for each parish, taking one 
 parish with another, would amply make up any 
 deficiency, and this amount throughout the 
 parishes of Ireland would require the sum of 
 1,000,000/. sterling to be appropriated from 
 the general fund; and this should be made 
 over absolutely and for ever to the Koman 
 Catholics of Ireland, in such hands and in such 
 manner as the funds of their Church raised by 
 voluntary effort are usually secured. 
 
 Under an arrangement of this kind, of 
 course, the special grant to the College of 
 Maynooth would be withdrawn. The Presby- 
 terians, under the operation of this Act, would 
 lose their annual grant of 40,000/. ; but, in 
 place of it, assuming that they have an organi- 
 zation and a system of government which would 
 enable them to hold and administer funds for 
 the use of their Church, a portion of the 
 general fund should be set apart for them, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M,R 15 
 
 equal to the production of a revenue of like 
 amount with that they now receive by grant 
 from Parliament. This should also be given to 
 them absolutely and for ever, and they should 
 become henceforth a voluntary and independent 
 Church. 
 
 The Protestant Episcopalians should be 
 treated as liberally as the Presbyterians, with 
 whom, it is estimated, they are about on a par 
 in point of numbers. Assuming that they 
 could and would form themselves into a Free 
 Episcopal Church, the Commission would be 
 empowered to grant them a sum equal to that 
 granted to the Presbyterians, and which would 
 be about the same in amount as that granted 
 to the Catholics. And further, so long as they 
 undertook to keep the churches in repair, they 
 might be permitted to retain possession of 
 them at a nominal rent, for their own use only; 
 and that when or where they had no congre- 
 gation sufficient to maintain the church, then 
 the buildings should be at the disposal of the 
 Commission to let or sell, as might be thought 
 best. In the case of the Protestant Episco- 
 palians, as with the Presbyterians and the 
 Catholics, whatever sum is given to them must 
 be given absolutely and for ever, that hence- 
 forth they may rely on their own resources and 
 become a voluntary and independent Church. 
 
 The State would thus have distributed about 
 3,000,000/. of the original fund, and would 
 have relinquished all claims upon it for ever ; 
 and it would be the duty of the Commission to 
 take care that those grants were applied, in the 
 
i6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 first instance, for the purposes and in the 
 manner intended by the Act. The remaining 
 5,000,000/. or 7,000,000/., as the case might 
 be, might, and in my opinion ought, to be re- 
 served for purposes strictly Irish, and directed 
 to the educational and moral improvement of 
 the people, without respect to class or creed. 
 This fuud would extend and perfect the educa- 
 tional institutions of the country; it would 
 establish and endow free libraries in all the 
 chief towns of Ireland, and would dispense 
 blessings in many channels for the free and 
 equal enjoyment of the whole population. Of 
 course there will be objections started to this 
 scheme, as there will be to any scheme which 
 attempts to remedy an injustice which has 
 lasted for centuries. The "Church party'' 
 may, and probably will, denounce it as a plan 
 of spoliation most cruel and unholy; but no 
 man who proposes to remedy Irish ecclesiastical 
 wrongs can expect to find favour with the sect 
 whose supremacy he is compelled to assail. 
 We must hope that State patronage has not so 
 entirely demoralized the members of the Pro- 
 testant Episcopalian sect, either in England or 
 Ireland, as to leave none among them who are 
 able to see what is just on this question, and 
 who are willing that what is just should be 
 done. I believe there are many intelligent and 
 earnest Churchmen, and some eminent poli- 
 ticians connected with the Established Church, 
 who would welcome almost any proposition 
 which afforded a hope of a final settlement of 
 this question. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 17 
 
 From Scotland, and probably from certain 
 quarters in England, we may hear of the great 
 crime of handing over 1,000,000Z. sterling to 
 the Roman Catholics of Ireland. It will, 
 perhaps, be insisted upon that to add to the 
 means of a Church whose teaching is held to 
 be " erroneous " is a grievous national sin; and 
 many will honestly doubt the wisdom of a 
 scheme which proposes such an appropriation 
 of a portion of the public fund. Now, there is 
 not a man in the United Kingdom more averse 
 to religious endowments by the State than I 
 am. I object to the compulsory levying of a 
 tax from any man to teach any religion, and 
 still more to teach a religion in which he 
 does not believe ; and I am of opinion that, to 
 take a Church into the pay of the State, and to 
 place it under the control of the State, is to 
 deaden and corrupt the Church, and to enlist 
 its influence on the side of all that is evil in the 
 civil government. But in the plan now sug- 
 gested the Irish sects or Churches would be 
 left entirely free, as is the Free Church in 
 Scotland, or the Wesleyan Methodist Church 
 in England. The grants once made, each 
 Church would possess absolutely its own funds, 
 just as much as if they were the accumulations 
 of the voluntary contributions and liberality of 
 past generations of its members, and thus 
 would be avoided the damage to religion and 
 to civil government which is inseparable from 
 what is called the union of Church and State ; 
 whilst the sum granted to each Church, being 
 equal to a provision of about 40,000L per 
 
 
 
1 8 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 annum, would be too small to create any 
 important corporate influence adverse to the 
 public interest. 
 
 As to tbe complaint that the sum of 
 1,000,000/. is proposed to be given to the Irish 
 Catholics, I will ask any man with a head to 
 comprehend, and a heart to feel, to read the 
 history of Ireland, not from the time of Henry 
 VIII., but from the accession of William III., 
 and if he insists upon a settlement of this ques- 
 tion by grants to the Protestant sects, and by 
 the refusal of any corresponding grant to the 
 Roman Catholics, I can only say that his states- 
 manship is as wanting in wisdom as his Pro- 
 testantism lacks the spirit of Christianity. If, 
 for generations, a portion of the Protestants of 
 Ireland, few in number, but possessing much 
 wealth, have enjoyed the large ecclesiastical 
 revenues of a whole kingdom; and if, during 
 the same period, the Roman Catholics, the bulk 
 of the population, but possessing little wealth, 
 have been thrown entirely on their own limited 
 resources, and under circumstances of political 
 and social inferiority, can it be possible, when 
 an attempt shall be made to remedy some of 
 the manifold injustice of past times, that any 
 Englishman or any Scotchman will be found to 
 complain of the impartiality of the Government, 
 and in his zeal for Protestantism to forget the 
 simple obligations of justice ? 
 
 But it may be objected that it is contrary to 
 sound policy to make grants of public money 
 to any public body, or corporation, or sect, not 
 submitting to State control — that, in fact, a 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 19 
 
 Churcli receiving anything from the State 
 should be a State Church. No one is more 
 sensible of the weight and soundness of this 
 argument than I am; but observe the pecu- 
 liarities of this case. I start from the point 
 that " henceforth there shall be no Church in 
 Ireland in connection with the State." I have 
 to free the Protestant Episcopalian sect and 
 the Presbyterians from their State connection ; 
 and to make the Irish sects voluntary Churches 
 for the future. I propose an appropriation of 
 about one-third of existing ecclesiastical pro- 
 perty in Ireland, with a view to soften the 
 apparent severity of the change to the sects 
 heretofore paid by the State, and to make some 
 amends to that majority of the Irish population, 
 the injustice of whose past treatment is admitted 
 by all the world. The Protestants of Ireland 
 have done hitherto little for themselves, because 
 the bounty of the State has paralysed their 
 exertions, or made exertion unnecessary. The 
 Catholics have done much for themselves ; but 
 they are in great poverty, and our existing 
 ecclesiastical legislation has been felt, and is 
 now felt, by them to be grievously unjust. 
 Would it not be worth the concession of the 
 sum I have suggested, and of the deviation from 
 ordinary rule which I venture to recommend, 
 to obtain the grand result which is contem- 
 plated by the change now proposed ? I have 
 said that there will be objections to this scheme 
 and to every scheme. The grievance is cen- 
 turies old, and around it are entvnned interests, 
 prejudices, fanaticism, animosities, and con- 
 
 c 2 
 
20 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 victions. It is a desperate evil, and whoever 
 waits till the remedy is pleasant to everybody 
 may and will wait for ever. The object in 
 view is the tranquillity of Ireland. The means 
 are simple, but altogether novel in that unhappy 
 country — to do full and impartial justice to 
 her whole population. I propose to leave the 
 Presbyterians as well circumstanced as they 
 are now, with this exception, that all future 
 extension of their organization must be made 
 at their own cost ; and I would place the Pro- 
 testant Episcopalians in as good a position as 
 the Presbyterians. The Catholics only could 
 have any ground of complaint, owing to their 
 numbers so far exceeding those of the Pro- 
 testant sects ; but in the application of the 
 remainder, and much the largest portion of the 
 funds, for educational or other purposes, they 
 would participate exactly in proportion to their 
 numbers ; and I have a strong belief that, so 
 far as they are concerned, such an arrange- 
 ment as is now suggested would be accepted as 
 a final settlement of a most difficult and irri- 
 tating question. 
 
 As you know, I am neither Roman Catholic, 
 Protestant Episcopalian, nor Presbyterian, nor 
 am I an Irishman. My interest in this matter 
 is not local or sectarian. I have endeavoured 
 to study it, and to regard it as becomes an 
 Englishman loving justice and freedom, anxious 
 for the tranquillity of Ireland, the welfare of 
 the empire, and the honour of the imperial 
 government. I believe that statesmanship does 
 not consist merely in preserving institutions. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 21 
 
 but rather in adapting them to the wants of 
 nations, and that it is possible so to adapt the 
 institutions of Ireland to the wants and circum- 
 stances of Ireland, that her people may become 
 as content as the people of England and Scot- 
 land are with the mild monarchy under which 
 we live. Some experience and much reflection 
 have convinced me that all efforts on behalf of 
 industry and peace in Ireland will be in great 
 part unavailing until we eradicate the sentiment 
 which is universal among her Catholic popula- 
 tion — that the Imperial Government is partial, 
 and Lthat to belong to the Eoman Catholic 
 Church is to incur the suspicion or the hostility 
 of the law^ A true ''equality" established 
 among the Irish sects would put an end to this 
 pernicious but all-pervading sentiment; and 
 Catholics, whether priests or laymen, would 
 feel that the last link of their fetters was at 
 length broken. Supremacy on the one hand, 
 and a degrading inferiority on the other, would 
 be abolished, and the whole atmosphere of 
 Irish social and political life would be purified. 
 Then, too, Christianity would appeal to the 
 population, not as a persecuting or a persecuted 
 faith, with her features disfigured by the 
 violence of political conflict, but radiant with 
 the divine beauty which belongs to her, and 
 speaking with irresistible force to the hearts 
 and consciences of men. 
 
 I know not if the statesman be among us 
 who is destined to settle this great question, 
 bub whoever he may be he will strengthen the 
 monarchy, earn the gratitude of three kingdoms, 
 
2 2 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 and build up for himself a lasting renown. I 
 am sensible that in writing this letter, and in 
 expressing the views it contains, I run the risk 
 of being misunderstood by some honest men, 
 and may subject myself to misrepresentation 
 and abuse. It is under a solemn sense of duty 
 to my country, and to the interests of justice 
 and religion, that I have ventured to write it. 
 I have endeavoured to divest myself of all feel- 
 ing of preference for, or hostility to, any of the 
 Churches or sects in Ireland, and to form my 
 judgment in this matter upon principles 
 admitted by all true statesmanship, and based 
 on the foundations of Christian justice. If I 
 should succeed in directing the attention of any 
 portion of those most deeply interested to some 
 mode of escape from the difficulties with which 
 this question is surrounded, I shall willingly 
 submit to the suspicions or condemnation of 
 those who cannot concur with me in opinion. 
 I wish this long letter were more worthy of its 
 purpose. As it is, I send it to you, and you 
 may make whatever use of it you think will be 
 likely to serve the cause of '' religious equality " 
 in Ireland. 
 
 Believe me to be, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE WAR WITH EUSSIA. 
 
 Written to Mr. David Urquhart, and read at a 
 public meeting convened by that gentleman at 
 the Corn Exchange, Manchester, on April 19th, 
 1854, to discuss the question, '' With whom are 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 23 
 
 we at war?" In opening the meeting Mr. 
 Urquliart said it was his sense of alarm that 
 had prompted his audacity in calKng the meet- 
 ing, and he thanked them for approving of 
 that audacity by their attendance. 
 
 Rochdale, April 18, 1854. 
 
 Dear Sm, — I have to thank you for your 
 note of the 15th inst., inviting me to a meeting 
 to be held in Manchester to-morrow. I am not 
 astounded at your audacity in calling the meet- 
 ing ; on the contrary, I believe in your sincerity. 
 I regard your resolution to appeal openly to 
 your countrymen as courageous and proper. 
 If I agreed with you on this Eastern question ; 
 if we had one starting-point — if our sentiments 
 in regard to it were in harmony — I should feel 
 it my duty to be at your side. Bub the fact is 
 that we differ widely on almost every point, 
 except in the condemnation of this war ; and I 
 do not think I should do anything for the cause 
 of peace by appearing to go with you, when, in 
 truth, there is little agreement between us. I 
 believe the war to be altogether unnecessary, 
 and that nothing can be said either for its jus- 
 tice or its expediency. I believe, further, that 
 after having permitted the country by a series 
 of blunders to drift into war, the ministers who 
 have chiefly spoken on the subject, with the 
 exception of Lord Aberdeen, have misrepre- 
 sented the facts of the case, and have thereby 
 misled public opinion. 
 
 With regard to the professed objects of the 
 war, I believe them to be impossible of attain- 
 
24 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ment, and that Eussia, in her wildest dreams of 
 ambition, never imagined so many calamities to 
 Turkey as have been brought upon that devoted 
 country, in a single year, by the friendship 
 which our Government has professed towards 
 her. It is a melancholy circumstance that the 
 English public — not examining, and not reflect- 
 ing, accepting, with a childlike simplicity, the 
 declarations of statesmen, whose only present 
 bond of union is a partnership in the guilt of 
 this war, and relying on the assertions of a 
 press more anxious for a trade in newspapers 
 than for truth — should give their sanction to 
 proceedings as much opposed to their own 
 interests as they are to every principle of 
 morality. Our countrymen fancy they are 
 fighting for freedom because the Russian 
 Government is a despotism : they forget that 
 the object of their solicitude is no less a despot ; 
 that their chief ally but the other day overthrew 
 a republic, and imprisoned or expatriated the 
 members of a freely-elected parliament; that 
 they are alternately coaxing and bullying 
 Austria, whose regard for freedom and justice 
 Hungary and Italy can attest, to join them in 
 this holy war, and that the chief result of their 
 success, if success be possible, will be to per- 
 petuate the domination of a handful of the 
 Ibllowers of Mahomet over many millions of 
 Christians throughout the provinces of Euro- 
 pean Turkey. 
 
 There was a time when it was fashionable to 
 have sympathy for Greece. Now, Athens is 
 to be occupied by English and French troops 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 25 
 
 if a strong anti-Turkish feeling is manifested 
 there. Five years ago English Liberals wished 
 success to the insurrections in Italy and to the 
 war for independence in Hungary ; now, the 
 efforts of the Greeks for freedom are pronounced 
 ill-timed, as if we, who are sending our fleets 
 and armies to perfect their subjugation to the 
 Turks, were the best judges of the moment 
 when their fetters should be struck off. The 
 people, or a portion of them, are drunk with a 
 confused notion of fighting with Eussia ; they 
 confound the blowing up of ships and the 
 slaughter of thousands with the cause of free- 
 dom, as if there were any connection in matters 
 wholly apart. 
 
 I cannot hope to change this feeling, and 
 fear you cannot. Time and experience alone 
 will convince them, perhaps when too late, 
 that a great national crime lies at their 
 door. The time w^ll come when history will 
 record what Engli-sh treasure was expended, 
 and what English blood was shed, for an object 
 in which England had no real interest, and for 
 an object, too, which the very statesmen who 
 advised it knew could not possibly succeed. 
 I have spoken my sentiments on this painful 
 question in the House of Commons — my con- 
 stituents are generally acquainted with them — 
 and therefore I feel it the less needful for me 
 to take part in the meeting to-morrow. 
 I am, with great respect. 
 Yours, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 David Urquliart, Esq., Manchester. 
 
26 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 LETTER TO MR. ABSALOM WATKIN. 
 
 Mr. Absalom Watkin, of Mancliester, having 
 invited Mr. Briglit to a meeting for the 
 Patriotic Fund about to be held in that citj, 
 and having stated that in his opinion the pre- 
 sent war was justified by the authority of Vattel, 
 Mr. Bright rephed in the subjoined letter. 
 
 Ehyl, North Wales, October 29, 1854. 
 
 My dear Sir, — I think, on further considera- 
 tion, you will perceive that the meeting on 
 Thursday would be a most improper occasion 
 for a discussion as to the justice of the war. 
 Just or unjust, the war is a fact, and the men 
 whose lives are miserably thrown away in it 
 have clearly a claim upon the country, and espe- 
 cially upon those who, by the expression of 
 opinions favourable to the war, have made 
 themselves responsible for it. I cannot, there- 
 fore, for a moment, appear to discourage the 
 liberality of those who believe the war to be 
 just, and whose utmost generosity, in my 
 opinion, will make but a wretched return for 
 the ruin they have brought upon hundreds of 
 families. 
 
 With regard to the war itself, I am not sur- 
 prised at the difference between your opinion 
 and mine, if you decide a question of this 
 nature by an appeal to Vattel. The "law of 
 nations " is not my law, and at best it is a code 
 full of confusion and contradictions, having its 
 foundation on custom, and not on a higher 
 morality ; and on custom which has always 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 27 
 
 been determined by the will of tlie strongest. 
 It may be a question of some interest wlietlier 
 the first crusade was in accordance with the 
 law and principles of Vattel; but whether the 
 first crusade was just, and whether the policy 
 of the crusades was a wise policy, is a totally 
 different question. I have no doubt that the 
 American war was a just war according to the 
 principles laid down by writers on the " law of 
 nations," and yet no man in his senses in 
 this country will now say that the policy of 
 George III. towards the American colonies was 
 a wise policy, or that war a righteous waj*. 
 The French war, too, was doubtless just accord- 
 ing to the same authorities ; for there were 
 fears and anticipated dangers to be combatted, 
 and law and order to be sustained in Europe ; 
 and yet few intelligent men now believe the 
 French war to have been either necessary or 
 just. You must excuse me if I refuse altogether 
 to pin my faith upon Vattel, There have been 
 writers on international law, who have at- 
 tempted to show that private assassination and 
 the poisoning of wells were justifiable in war ; 
 and perhaps it would be difficult to demon- 
 strate wherein these horrors differ from some 
 of the practices which are now in vogue. I will 
 not ask you to mould your opinion on these 
 points by such writers, nor shall I submit my 
 judgment to that of Vattel. 
 
 The question of this present war is in two 
 parts — first, was it necessary for us to interfere 
 by arms in a dispute between the Russians and 
 the Turks ? and secondly, having determined to 
 
28 THE PUBLIC LE2TERS 
 
 interfere, under certain circumstances, why was 
 not the whole question terminated when Russia 
 accepted the Vienna note ? The seat of war is 
 3000 miles away from us. We had not been 
 attacked — not even insulted in any way. Two 
 independent Grovernments had a dispute, and 
 we thrust ourselves into the quarrel. That 
 there was some ground for the dispute is ad- 
 mitted by the four powers in the proposition of 
 the Vienna note. But for the Enghsh Minister 
 at Constantinople and the Cabinet at home the 
 dispute would have settled itself, and the last 
 note of Prince MenschikoS would have been 
 accepted, and no human being can point out any 
 material difference between that note and the 
 Vienna note, afterwards agreed upon and re- 
 commended by the Governments of England, 
 France, Austria, and Prussia. But our Govern- 
 ment would not allow the dispute to be settled. 
 Lord Stratford de Redcliffe held private inter- 
 views with the Sultan — did his utmost to alarm 
 him — insisted on his rejection of all terms of 
 accommodation with Russia, and promised him 
 the armed assistance of England if war should 
 arise. 
 
 The Turks rejected the Russian note, and 
 the Russians crossed the Pruth, occupying the 
 Principalities as a " material guarantee." I do 
 not defend this act of Russia : it has always 
 appeared to me impolitic and immoral ; but I 
 think it likely it could be well defended out of 
 Vattel, and it is at least as justifiable as the 
 conduct of Lord John Russell and Lord Palmer- 
 ston in 1850, when they sent ten or twelve 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 29 
 
 ships of war to the Pirseus, menacing the town 
 with a bombardment if the dishonest pecuniary 
 claim made by Don Pacifico were not at once 
 satisfied. 
 
 But the passage of the Pruth was declared 
 by England and France and Turkey not to be a 
 casus belli. Negotiations were commenced at 
 Vienna, and the celebrated Vienna note was 
 drawn up. This note had its origin in Paris, 
 was agreed to by the Conference at Vienna, 
 ratified and approved by the Cabinets of Paris 
 and London, and pronounced by all these au- 
 thorities to be such as would satisfy the honour 
 of Russia, and at the same time be compatible 
 with the "independence and integrity" of 
 Turkey and the honour of the Sultan. Russia 
 accepted this note at once, — accepted it, I be- 
 lieve, by telegraph, even before the precise 
 words of it had been received in St. Peters- 
 burg. Everybody thought the question now 
 settled ; a Cabinet Minister assured me we 
 should never hear another word about it ; " the 
 whole thing is at an end," he said, and so it 
 appeared for a moment. But the Turk refused 
 the note which had been drawn up by his own 
 arbitrators, and which Russia had accepted. 
 And what did the Ministers say then, and what 
 did their organ, the Times, say ? They said it 
 was merely a difference about words ; it was a 
 pity the Turk made any difficulty, but it would 
 soon be settled. But it was not settled, and 
 why not ? It is said that the Russian Govern- 
 ment put an improper construction on the 
 Vienna note. But it is unfortunate for those 
 
30 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 wlio say tliis, tliat the Turk placed precisely 
 tlie same construction upon it ; and further it 
 is upon record that the French Government 
 advised the Russian Government to accept it, 
 on the ground that '' its general sense differed 
 in nothing from the sense of the proposition of 
 Prince Menschikoff." It is, however, easy to 
 see why the Russian Government should, when 
 the Turks refused the award of their own arbi- 
 trators, re-state its original claim, that it might 
 not be damaged by whatever concession it 
 had made in accepting the award ; and this is 
 evidently the explanation of the document 
 issued by Count Nesselrode, and about which 
 so much has been said. But, after this, the 
 Emperor of Russia spoke to Lord Westmore- 
 land on the subject at Olmutz, and expressed 
 his readiness to accept the Vienna note, with 
 any clause which the Conference might add to 
 it, explaining and restricting its meaning ; and 
 he urged that this should be done at once, as 
 he was anxious that his troops should re-cross 
 the Pruth before winter. It was in this very 
 week that the Turks summoned a grand 
 council, and, contrary to the advice of England 
 and France, determined on a declaration of 
 war. 
 
 Now, observe the course taken by our Govern- 
 ment. They agreed to the Vienna note ; not 
 fewer than five members of this Cabinet have 
 filled the office of Foreign Secretary, and there- 
 fore may be supposed capable of comprehend- 
 ing its meaning : it was a note drawn up by 
 the friends of Turkey, and by arbitrators self- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 31 
 
 constituted on behalf of Tarkey; they urged 
 its acceptance on the Russian Government, and 
 the Eussian Government accepted it ; there 
 was then a dispute about its precise meaning, 
 and Russia agreed, and even proposed that the 
 arbitrators at Vienna should amend it, by ex- 
 plaining it, and limiting its meaning, so that 
 no question of its intention should henceforth 
 exist. But, the Turks having rejected it, our 
 Government turned round, and declared the 
 Vienna note, their own note, entirely inad- 
 missible, and defended the conduct of the 
 Turks in having rejected it. The Turks de- 
 clared war, against the advice of the English 
 and French Governments — so, at least, it 
 appears from the blue-books ; but the momexit 
 war was declared by Turkey, our Government 
 openly applauded it. England, then, was com- 
 mitted to the war. She had promised armed 
 assistance to Turkey — a country without go- 
 vernment, and whose administration was at 
 the mercy of contending factions; and incapable 
 of fixing a policy for herself, she allowed her- 
 self to be dragged on by the current of events 
 at Constantinople. She " drifted," as Lord 
 Clarendon said, exactly describing his own 
 position, into the war, apparently without 
 rudder and without compass. 
 
 The whole policy of our Government in this 
 matter is marked with an imbecility perhaps 
 without example. I will not say they intended 
 a war from the first, though there are not 
 wanting many evidences that war was the 
 object of at least a section of the Cabinet, A 
 
32 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 distinguislied member of the House of Commons 
 said to a friend of mine, immediately after the 
 accession of the present Government to office, 
 " You have a war Ministry, and you will have 
 a war." But I leave this question to point out 
 the disgraceful feebleness of the Cabinet, if I 
 am to absolve them from the guilt of having 
 sought occasion for war. They promised the 
 Turk armed assistance on conditions, or with- 
 out conditions. They, in concert with France, 
 Austria, and Prussia, took the original dispute 
 out of the hands of Eussia and Turkey, and 
 formed themselves into a court of arbitration 
 in the interests of Turkey ; they made an 
 award, which they declared to be safe and 
 honourable for both parties ; this award was 
 accepted by Russia and rejected by Turkey; 
 and they then turned round upon their own 
 award, declared it to be " totally inadmissible," 
 and made war upon the very country whose 
 Government, at their suggestion and urgent 
 recommendation, had frankly accepted it. At 
 this moment England is engaged in a murder- 
 ous warfare with Russia, although the Russian 
 Government accepted her own terms of peace, 
 and has been willing to accept them in the 
 sense of England's own interpretation of them 
 ever since they were offered ; and at the same 
 time England is allied with Turkey, whose 
 Government rejected the award of England, 
 and who entered into the war in opposition to 
 the advice of England. Surely, when the 
 Vienna note was accepted by Russia, the Turks 
 should have been prevented from going to war, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.R Z2> 
 
 or should liave been allowed to go to war at 
 their own risk. 
 
 I have said nothing here of the fact that all 
 these troubles have sprung out of the demands 
 made by France upon the Turkish Government, 
 and urged in language more insulting than any 
 which has been shown to have been used by 
 Prince Menschikoff. I have said nothing of the 
 diplomatic war which has been raging for many 
 years past in Constantinople, and in which 
 England has been behind no other Power in 
 attempting to subject the Porte to foreign in- 
 fluences. I have said nothing of the abundant 
 evidences there is that we are not only at war 
 with Russia, but with all the Christian popu- 
 lation of the Turkish empire, and that we are 
 building up our Eastern Policy on a false foun- 
 dation — namely, on the perpetual maintenance 
 of the most immoral and filthy of all despotisms 
 over one of the fairest portions of the earth 
 which it has desolated, and over a population 
 it has degraded but has not been able to destroy. 
 I have said nothing of the wretched delusion 
 that we are fighting for civilization in support- 
 ing the Turk against the Russian and against 
 the subject Christian population of Turkey. I 
 have said nothing about our pretended sacrifices 
 for freedom in this war, in which our great 
 and now dominant ally is a monarch who, last 
 in Europe, struck down a free constitution, and 
 dispersed by military violence a national Repre- 
 sentative Assembly. 
 
 My doctrine would have been non-intervention 
 in this case. The danger of the Russian power 
 
 ^ or T 
 
34 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 was a phantom ; the necessity of permanently 
 upholding the Mahometan rule in Europe is an 
 absurdity. Our love for civilization, when we 
 subject the Greeks and Christians to the Turks, 
 is a sham ; and our sacrifices for freedom, 
 when working out the behests of the Emperor 
 of the French and coaxing Austria to help 
 us, is a pitiful imposture. The evils of non- 
 intervention were remote and vague, and could 
 neither be weighed nor described in any ac- 
 curate terms. The good we can judge some- 
 thing of already, by estimating the cost of a 
 contrary policy. And what is that cost ? War 
 in the north and south of Europe, threatening 
 to involve every country of Europe. Many, 
 perhaps fifty millions sterling, in the course of 
 expenditure by this country alone, to be raised 
 from the taxes of a people whose extrication 
 from ignorance and poverty can only be hoped 
 for from the continuance of peace. The dis- 
 turbance of trade throughout the world, the 
 derangement of monetary affairs, and difficulties 
 and ruin to thousands of families. Another 
 year of high prices of food, notwithstanding a 
 full harvest in England, chiefly because war 
 interferes with imports, and we have declared 
 our principal foreign food-growers to be our 
 enemies. The loss of human life to an enor- 
 mous extent. Many thousands of our own 
 countrymen have already perished of pestilence 
 and in the field ; and hundreds, perhaps thou- 
 sands, of English famiUes will be plunged into 
 sorrow, as a part of the penalty to be paid for 
 the folly of the nation and its rulers. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 35 
 
 When the time comes for the '' inquisition 
 Tor blood," who shall answer for these things ? 
 You have read the tidings from the Crimea ; 
 you have, perhaps, shuddered at the slaughter ; 
 you remember the terrific picture — I speak not 
 of the battle, and the charge, and the tumultu- 
 ous excitement of the conflict, but of the field 
 after the battle — Russians in their frenzy or 
 their terror, shooting Englishmen who would 
 have offered them water to quench their agony 
 of thirst ; Englishmen, in crowds, rifling the 
 pockets of the men they had slain or wounded, 
 taking their few shillings or roubles, and dis- 
 covering among the plunder of the stiffening 
 corpses images of the " Virgin and the Child." 
 You have read this, and your imagination, has 
 followed the fearful details. This is war, — 
 every crime which human nature can commit 
 or imagine, every horror it can perpetrate or 
 suffer ; and this it is which our Christian 
 Government reckles'sly plunges into, and which 
 so many of our countrymen at this moment 
 think it patriotic to applaud ! You must ex- 
 cuse me if I cannot go with you. I will have 
 no part in this terrible crime. My hands shall 
 be unstained with the blood which is being 
 shed. The necessity of maintaining themselves 
 in office may influence an administration ; delu- 
 sions may mislead a people ; Vattel may afford 
 you a law and a defence ; but no respect for 
 men who form a Government, no regard I have 
 for '' going with the stream," and no fear of 
 being deemed wanting in patriotism, shall in- 
 fluence me in favour of a policy which, in my 
 
 D 2 
 
36 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 conscience, I believe to be as criminal before 
 God as it is destructive of the true interest of 
 my country. 
 
 I have only to ask you to forgive me for 
 writing so long a letter. You have forced it 
 from me, and I would not have written it did I 
 not so much appreciate your sincerity and your 
 good intentions towards me. 
 
 Believe me to be very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Absalom Watkin, Esq., Manchester. 
 
 ON HIS REPRESENTATION OF MAN- 
 CHESTER. 
 
 Read at a public meeting in the Free Trade 
 Hall, Manchester, on Thursday evening, the 29th 
 of January, 1857. The meeting was held to sup- 
 port the cause of Free Trade and Reform, Mr. 
 George Wilson being in the chair. The letter 
 was received with applause, and a resolution was 
 afterwards enthusiastically passed, expressing 
 sympathy with, and unabated confidence in, 
 Mr. Bright, and requesting him to allow the 
 continuance of his parliamentary connection 
 with that city. 
 
 Mr. Bright had represented Manchester since 
 July, 1847, when he was elected along with 
 Mr. Milner Gibson. From 1843 up to that 
 time he had represented the City of Durham. 
 
 Kochdale, November 5, 1856. 
 
 My dear Wilson, — I mentioned to you a few 
 days ago that I was about to leave England 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P, 37 
 
 for a considerable time, probably for several 
 months. My health, as you know, is greatly 
 improved during the past six months — so much 
 so as to afford strong reason for the belief that 
 a further period of relaxation, and change of 
 objects and interests, will so far restore me as 
 to enable me again to attend to public business. 
 I have consulted physicians of extensive prac- 
 tice, and eminent in the profession, and their 
 opinions all concur in this — that a complete 
 rest from public labour, for a longer period, is 
 necessary ; and that this, it may be hoped and 
 believed, will give me renewed health and 
 strength. Acting upon this advice, which my 
 own judgment entirely approves, I am about to 
 leave home for some months, and I shall, there- 
 fore, in all probability, not be able to attend 
 the House of Commons during the next session 
 of Parliament. 
 
 I think it my duty, under these circum- 
 stances, to write to you in your capacity of 
 chairman of the committee which undertook 
 the management of my election in 1852. I am 
 very sensible of the kindness shown to me by 
 my constituents, inasmuch as I believe they 
 freely consented to my absence from Parlia- 
 ment during the past session. In absenting 
 myself for another session, however, I feel that 
 I am bound to enter into a more public and 
 definite explanation with them. 
 
 Incapable as I am at present, of performing 
 any of the duties of their representative, it 
 would seem to be my duty to resign my seat in 
 Parliament, and to give them the opportuity of 
 
38 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 electing my successor. I feel, however, that 
 the wishes and convenience of the constituency 
 ought to be consulted before I decide. If we 
 were at the beginning, instead of being, as we 
 are, very near the end of a Parliament, the 
 interests of all concerned would probably be 
 best promoted by my immediate resignation; 
 but as a general election is likely to take place 
 during the year 1857, it may not be thought 
 desirable to have two elections for Manchester 
 during the same year. This is a point which I 
 am anxious to refer to my friends in Man- 
 chester before I do anything which would make 
 an immediate election unavoidable. 
 
 You will greatly obhge me, therefore, if you 
 will take such steps as appear to you best, to 
 ascertain the wishes . of my constituents as to 
 the course I should take. I shall be guided by 
 their decision, either to vacate my seat in 
 Parliament on the opening of the coming 
 session, or to retain it till the dissolution of 
 the Parliament, which may come in the spring, 
 and is almost certain to come in the autumn, 
 of 1857. 
 
 I hope I am not too sanguine in believing 
 that a few months more of rest — rest of the 
 faculties which have had almost no rest during 
 the past fifteen years, — will restore to me the 
 power, as I still have the will, to labour in 
 that field in which so much of my life has 
 been spent. If I am permitted to recover my 
 former strength before the occurrence of a 
 general election, I shall then hope for a con- 
 tinuance of the confidence which the electors 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 39 
 
 of Manchester have so long placed in me ; if 
 renewed health be not granted to me, I shall 
 then withdraw from public life, remembering, 
 as long as I live, how much I owe to the kind- 
 ness and forbearance of those in whose name, 
 and on whose behalf, I have acted for nine 
 years past in the House of Commons. 
 
 Believe me very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON LOSING HIS SEAT FOE MAN- 
 CHESTEE. 
 
 At the general election, in March, 1857, a 
 strong effort was made by the leading Whig 
 politicians in the city to secure the defeat of 
 Mr. Bright and his colleague, Mr. Milner 
 Gibson, the members for Manchester, on account 
 of their opposition to the Eussian war. Mr. 
 Bright was seeking health on the Continent at 
 the time, and he was represented in the election 
 contest by his friend, Mr. Cobden. The result 
 of the polling was that Mr. Bright and Mr. 
 Gibson were defeated, Sir John Potter and 
 Mr. J. Aspinall Turner being returned to Par- 
 liament in their stead. 
 
 Upon receiving, by telegram, the result of 
 the election, Mr. Bright wrote the following 
 farewell address to the electors of Manchester, 
 which appeared in the Examiner and Times of 
 the 8th of April, 1857:— 
 
 To THE Electors of the City or Manchester. 
 Gentlemen, — I have received a telegraphic 
 
40 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 despatcli, informing me of the result of the 
 election contest in which you have just been 
 engaged. That result has not greatly surprised 
 me, and, so far as I am personally concerned — 
 inasmuch as it liberates me from public life in 
 a manner which involves on my part no shrink- 
 ing from any duty — I cannot earnestly regret it. 
 I lament it on public grounds, because it tells 
 the world that many amongst you have aban- 
 doned the opinions you professed to hold in the 
 year 1847, and even so recently as the year 
 1852. I believe that slander itself has not 
 dared to charge me with having forsaken any 
 of the principles on the honest support of 
 which I offered myself twice, and was twice 
 accepted as your representative. The charge 
 against me has rather been, that I have too 
 warmly and too faithfully defended the political 
 views which found so much favour with you at 
 the two previous elections. 
 
 If the change in your opinion of me has 
 arisen from my course on the question of the 
 war with Russia, I can only say that, on a calm 
 review of all the circumstances of the case, — 
 and during the past twelve months I have had 
 ample time for such a review, — I would not 
 unsay or retract any one of the speeches I have 
 spoken, or erase from the records of Parliament 
 any one of the votes I have given upon it, if I 
 could thereby reverse the decision to which you 
 have come, or secure any other distinction 
 which it is in the power of my countrymen to 
 confer. I am free, and will remain free, from 
 any share in the needless and guilty bloodshed 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 41 
 
 of that melanclioly chapter in the annals of my 
 country. I cannot, however, forget that the 
 leaders of the opposition in the recent contest 
 have not been influenced by my conduct on 
 this question. They were less successful, but 
 not less bitter, in their hostility in 1852, and 
 even in 1847, when my only public merit or 
 demerit consisted in my labours in the cause of 
 Free Trade. On each occasion, calling them- 
 selves Liberals, and calling their candidates 
 Liberals also, they have coalesced with the 
 Conservatives, whilst now, doubtless, they have 
 assailed Mr. Gribson and myself on the ground 
 of a pretended coalition with the Conservatives 
 in the House of Commons. 
 
 I have esteemed it a high honour to be one 
 of your representatives, and have given more 
 of mental and physical labour to your service 
 than was just to myself ; I feel it scarcely less 
 an honour to suffer in the cause of peace, and 
 on behalf of what I believe to be the true 
 interests of my country — though I could have 
 wished that the blow had come from other 
 hands, at a time when I could have been pre- 
 sent to meet face to face those who dealt it. 
 
 In taking my leave of you and of public life, 
 let me assure you that I can never forget the 
 many — the innumerable kindnesses^I have re- 
 ceived from my friends amongst you. No one 
 will rejoice more than I shall in all that brings 
 you prosperity and honour; and I am not 
 without a hope that, when a calmer hour shall 
 come, you will say of Mr. Gibson and of me, 
 that, as colleagues in your representation for 
 
42 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ten years, we have not sacrificed our principles 
 to gain popularity, or bartered our independence 
 for tlie emoluments of office, or the favours of 
 the great. I feel that we liave stood for tlie 
 rights, and interests, and freedom of the people, 
 and that we have not tarnished the honour or 
 lessened the renown of your eminent city. 
 I am now, as I have hitherto been, 
 
 Very faithfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Florence, March 31, 1857. 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 Written in reply to a letter enclosing reso- 
 lutions passed at a public meeting at Hawick, 
 expressing sympathy with Messrs. Cobden, 
 Bright, and Gribson, in losing their seats in 
 Parliament. 
 
 Geneva, May 17, 1857. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Your kind note, enclosing a copy 
 of the resolutions passed at a public meeting of 
 the inhabitants of Hawick, reached me only last 
 evening. I lose no time in writing to say that 
 I am very glad to find that in your town the 
 cause of Reform, Free Frade, and Retrench- 
 ment has so many warm friends, and that you 
 have understood and approved the policy which 
 Mr. Cobdefi, Mr. Gibson, and myself have sup- 
 ported in the House of Commons. In the 
 question of Free Trade little progress has been 
 made for some years past. As to Retrench- 
 ment, the word has become almost obsolete, 
 and the military expenditure of the country is 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 43 
 
 now nearly double the amount wliicli the Duke 
 of Wellington and Sir Robert Peel thought 
 necessary in 1835, although we have no more 
 territory to defend, and although a large army 
 is no longer necessary to maintain tranquillity 
 in Ireland. As to Reform, whilst almost every- 
 body professes to be in favt)ur of it in some 
 shape, the preparation of the particular bill to 
 be brought forward next year is left in the 
 hands of a minister whose hostility to every 
 proposition for Reform since the year 1832 is 
 notorious and undeniable. Whether on these 
 three points, to which your resolutions refer, 
 the country is in a satisfactory condition, I 
 must leave the friends of Free Trade, Reform, 
 and Retrenchment to decide. 
 
 With regard to the promised Reform, let me 
 warn you to look not more to the question of 
 the franchise than to the other arrangements 
 of the measure. It would be easy to double 
 the number of electors, and at the same time 
 to increase the aristocratic influence in Parlia- 
 ment. To give votes without giving repre- 
 sentatives in some fair degree in proportion to 
 the votes, is but to cheat the people ; and to 
 give a large increase of votes without the secu- 
 rity of the ballot will subject increased numbers 
 of our countrymen to the degrading influences 
 which wealth and power now exercise so un- 
 scrupulously upon the existing electoral body. 
 A moderate measure, and an honest one as far 
 as it goes, is far more to be desired than one 
 of great pretensions with some fraudulent 
 scheme for defeating the wishes of the nation. 
 
44 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 A dislaonest apportionment of members may 
 effectually destroy a representation, and any 
 trick to obstruct the free action of majorities, 
 such as that proposed in Lord John Eussell's 
 last Bill, should be strenuously resisted as cal- 
 culated to undermine the very basis of repre- 
 sentative institutions, and designed only to 
 cheat the people of that increased power which 
 the Bill would profess to confer upon them. 
 
 Whether I shall ever again in Parliament 
 support the policy you approve is extremely un- 
 certain, but I shall always retain a grateful 
 sense of the kindness which I have received in 
 past times, and at the present time, from the 
 intelligent community on whose behalf you have 
 written to me. 
 
 Believe me to be very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 To Alex. Laing, Esq., Hawick» 
 
 ON HIS BEING ELECTED A MEMBER 
 FOR BIRMINGHAM. 
 
 A vacancy having occurred, through the 
 death of Mr. Muntz, in the representation of 
 Birmingham, it was resolved at a public meet- 
 ing held on the 4th of August, 1857, to put 
 forward Mr. Bright as a candidate, and on being 
 asked he consented to stand. He was elected 
 on the 10th of August, in his absence — his 
 health not having yet been thoroughly re-esta- 
 blished — and without opposition. On the re- 
 ceipt of the news of his election, Mr. Bright sent 
 the following address to the electors : — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 45 
 TO THE ELECTORS OF BIRMINGHAM. 
 
 Gentlemen, — Your respected chief magistrate 
 has informed me by telegraph that he has this 
 day declared me to be duly elected one of your 
 representatives in Parliament; and I have 
 learned from other sources that such was the 
 feeling manifested in my favour, that no other 
 candidate was presented to you at the hustings, 
 and that, therefore, my election has been with- 
 out contest or opposition from any quarter. 
 
 When I addressed you two days ago, I had 
 no expectation of a result so speedy and so 
 tranquil of the then impending struggle. I 
 accept it as a conclusive proof of the bias of 
 your political views, and of a confidence in me 
 which I shall strive to maintain undiminished. 
 
 It is a matter of real regret to me that I have 
 not been able to be with you during the past 
 week, and at the hustings this day. I shall 
 hope, however, that on some not distant occa- 
 sion, I may be permitted to meet you in your 
 noble Town Hall, and to become more inti- 
 mately acquainted with a constituency from 
 whom I have received an honour as signal as 
 it was unexpected, and towards whom I can 
 never entertain other feelings than those of 
 respect and gratitude. 
 
 With heartfelt thanks for your kindness, 
 which I trust I may have the health and the 
 opportunity in some measure to repay, I sub- 
 scribe myself, 
 
 Very faithfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 KocMale, August 10, 1857. 
 
46 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON BEING ASKED TO SUBSCRIBE TO 
 A BAZAAE. 
 
 A gentleman connected with a bazaar which 
 was opened in Birmingham on the 10th of 
 August, 1857, thinking that as the occurrence 
 of Mr. Bright' s election on that daj had inter- 
 fered with the probable profits, the honourable 
 member might be induced from this circum- 
 stance to assist their funds, wrote him to that 
 effect. Mr. Bright sent him the following 
 reply : — 
 
 August, 1857. 
 
 Sir, — I am sorry if the occurrence of the 
 election should have made your bazaar less 
 productive ; but if it has done so, I can hardly 
 be held in any way responsible for it. I can- 
 not undertake to subscribe to public objects in 
 Birmingham, on account of my political con- 
 nection with it. Since I have been in Parlia- 
 ment I have always abstained from subscrip- 
 tions for objects connected with the constituency 
 I represented, and I intend to continue that 
 course. A contrary course would lead me to 
 an expenditure which I could not consent to 
 with any prudence, and might lead to an en- 
 deavour to secure public favour by means which 
 I cannot practise or approve. I hope, there- 
 fore, you will excuse me, if I find myself unable 
 to add to your funds, and that you will rightly 
 interpret the grounds upon which I act in this 
 matter. 
 
 I am, very respectfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 47 
 
 ON THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA. 
 
 Written to Mr. Ald-erman Llojd, of Birming- 
 ham, the day before the opening of Parhament 
 in December, 1857. The terrible struggle for 
 the suppression of the mutiny in India was at 
 that time taking place. 
 
 Eochdale, December 2, 1857. 
 
 My dear Sir, — As Parliament, contrary to 
 expectation, is about to meet before the usual 
 time, I fear the electors of Birmingham will 
 feel some disappointment if I do not make my 
 appearance in the House during the present 
 week, and the more so, from the circumstance 
 that my colleague, Mr. Scholefield, will also be 
 absent. 
 
 It is not necessary for me to explain to you, 
 or to the gentlemen who communicated with 
 me at the time of the election, why I am not 
 likely to begin my parliamentary duties before 
 Christmas. It was then understood that, for 
 six months, that is, until the time when Parlia- 
 ment usually assembles, I was not to be ex- 
 pected to undertake any labour connected with 
 the position in which I was then placed by the 
 good opinion of the electors of Birmingham. 
 My own judgment, and the urgent advice of 
 my friends and medical advisers, compelled me 
 to make a resolution to that effect, and those 
 of my Birmingham friends with whom I had 
 any communication granted me a dispensation 
 for that period. I do not suppose that any 
 real business will be transacted before February, 
 
4a THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 and therefore I hope that nothing which is 
 entrusted to me will suffer from my temporary 
 absence from the House. 
 
 It is because I wished to abstain as much as 
 possible from public affairs, that I have not 
 troubled my constituents with any views I may 
 entertain on the great subjects which have 
 been so much discussed during the past three 
 months. On the question of India, indeed, I 
 feel that it is almost rashness to utter a de- 
 cided opinion, and I know not whether one 
 ought to regard with admiration or with pity 
 many of those who have written and spoken so 
 confidently upon it since the occurrence of the 
 insurrection. Judging from the writings of 
 the newspapers, and from the speeches of 
 public men, I fear the country is by no means 
 sufl&ciently aware of the crisis which has arisen, 
 whether we regard the difficulty of restoring 
 order in India, or the obstacles which oppose 
 themselves to the future government of that 
 country. Five years ago, when the India 
 Bill was about to come under discussion, I 
 thought I knew something of India, and felt 
 that I could give advice on the subject. But 
 the scene has totally changed, and that which 
 was easy to be done in fair weather, may be 
 impossible, or of little avail, when the storm 
 rages. I presume, however, that the days of 
 the Leadenhall Street rulers of India are 
 numbered. Without character and without 
 power, it requires but a vote of Parliament to 
 give legal effect to that which, I believe, the 
 public opinion of England has already decreed. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 49 
 
 If the coming session shall establish the 
 Government of India on a secure and wide 
 basis, so far as that is possible in the unnatural 
 position in which we stand to that country, I 
 shall feel that Parliament has not laboured in 
 vain ; and if the threatened postponement of a 
 Reform Bill be a disappointment to me and to 
 many others, I shall endeavour to console 
 myself with the hope that the improvement of 
 our representation will hereafter be entrusted 
 to more friendly hands than those which now 
 administer the affairs of the country. 
 
 Excuse me for troubling you with this letter, 
 and believe me very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Thomas Lloyd, Esq., Birmingham. 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 THE NECESSITY OP A REDISTRIBUTION OF SEATS 
 AND. THE BALLOT. 
 
 Read at a meeting held in the Town Hall, 
 Birmingham, on the 2nd of February, 1858, in 
 support of Parliamentary Reform. 
 
 The London circular, referred to in the 
 letter, was an address on the subject of Reform, 
 issued in London in January, 1858. It was 
 signed by over thirty Liberal Members of Par- 
 liament of advanced views, and urged upon 
 the people the desirability of insisting upon the 
 following points : — 
 
 1. ((x) The extension of the borough fran- 
 chise in England and Wales to every male 
 person of full age and not subject to any legal. 
 
50 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 incapacity, wlio shall occupy, as owner or 
 tenant in part or whole, any premises within 
 the borough which are rated for the relief of 
 the poor. 
 
 {b) The extension of the county franchise in 
 England and Wales to all 10?. occupiers at 
 least. 
 
 (c) The assimilation, as far as possible, of 
 the franchises in Scotland and Ireland to those 
 of England and Wales. 
 
 2. Protection to the voter by the ballot, on 
 a plan similar to that adopted in the Australian 
 colonies. 
 
 3. A reapportionment of seats that shall 
 make such an approach to an equalization of 
 constituencies as shall give in the United 
 Kingdom a majority of members to a majority 
 of electors. 
 
 4. Abolition of property qualification for 
 members. 
 
 5. The calling of a new Parliament every 
 three years. 
 
 Eochdale, February 1, 1858. 
 
 My deae Sir, — Although I am unable to be 
 upon your platform to-morrow, be assured that 
 I shall be with you in spirit, and that I wish 
 every success to your Reform movement. May 
 I intrude upon you with a few lines on the 
 great topic you are about to discuss ? 
 
 I observe that in the first paragraph in your 
 circular you ask the aid of your townsmen in 
 the endeavour to obtain an " extension of the 
 suffrage." Afterwards you insert the propo- 
 sitions of the London Committee, which I am 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP. 51 
 
 very glad to see you have adopted. But you 
 are probably looking to the extension of the 
 suffrage as the main point and principal de- 
 mand of the new agitation. I am as much for 
 this extension as you can be, and therefore I 
 can, without suspicion as to my wishes with 
 regard to it, the more frankly warn you of a 
 danger which I see before us. Twenty-five 
 years ago, the Tory party, and the Whigs 
 almost as much so, were greatly afraid of an 
 extension of the suffrage. J^ow very few 
 persons of any intelligence^ even among the 
 Conservatives, are afraid of it. The proposi- 
 tions made some time ago by the government 
 of Lord John Russell and Lord Aberdeen, 
 showed clearly that the franchise is no longer 
 the dread of the aristocratic and ruling classes, 
 and it is not unlikely that Lord Palmerston, if 
 he produces a Reform Bill, will go a long way 
 in the direction we wish to go, so far as the 
 franchise is concerned. We can easily under- 
 stand this. The franchise itself gives no real 
 power, unless accompanied by the right on the 
 part of all the possessors of it to elect some- 
 thing like an equal number of representatives. 
 I could easily frame a bill which would give 
 " universal suffrage " in its widest sense, and 
 which would confirm more strongly than ever 
 the supremacy of the English oligarchy over 
 the English people. If your great city, with 
 its great constituency, is only to send two men 
 to Parliament, whilst an equal population and 
 property in some other part of the kingdom is 
 to send twenty men to Parliament, then, I say, 
 
 E 2 
 
52 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 your francliise is of little avail. The man who 
 can merely shout at the hustings, or contribute 
 to the show of hands, is, in reality, in almost 
 as good a position as the man who votes, if the 
 value of votes is rendered so unequal, or is 
 nearly destroyed, by the unequal distribution 
 of representatives among the whole body of 
 electors. The Grovernment and the Parliament, 
 even the House of Lords, will consent to a 
 large increase of electors ; and men who have 
 not considered the subject fully will imagine 
 they have gained much by the concession. 
 Lord John Eussell, in his many speeches on a 
 further measure of Keform, generally, if not 
 always, confines himself to an extension of the 
 franchise ; and his last bill, although it would 
 have added to the number of electors through- 
 out the kingdom, would have done absolutely 
 nothing to lessen the power of the order to 
 which he belongs, or to increase that of the 
 nation as distinguished from its privileged and 
 aristocratic class. 
 
 It is not a matter of opinion, or of any doubt, 
 that I am discussing. It is a question of fact 
 and of arithmetic; and therefore I wish to 
 urge it strongly upon your attention. The 
 contest on the question of Reform will be on 
 the distribution of seats. Will the great 
 borough of the Tower Hamlets, with its half a 
 milHon of population, be content to return only 
 two members to Parliament ? Will Finsbury, 
 will Marylebone, will Lambeth, and the other 
 London boroughs ? Will Glasgow, and Man- 
 chester, and Liverpool, and Birmingham, and 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 53 
 
 the other leading cities of the United Kingdom, 
 be content to dwarf themselves politically to 
 the size of boroughs whose whole population 
 would scarcely people one of the inferior 
 streets ? Shall it be admitted that the more 
 men come together, the more they are in- 
 dustrious, skilful, intelligent, and powerful in 
 every other respect, the less shall be their in- 
 fluence in the government of their country? 
 This is the great question, and it rests with 
 the people of Birmingham to do much to solve 
 it. 
 
 Any Reform Bill which is worth a moment's 
 thought, or the smallest effort to carry it, must 
 at least double, and it ought to do much more 
 than double, the representation of the metro- 
 politan boroughs and of all the great cities of 
 the United Kingdom. The United States of 
 America, and Belgium, and Sardinia, compre- 
 hend this simple question. A year ago I was 
 in the city of Genoa, and I found that it re- 
 turned seven representatives to the Sardinian 
 Parliament at Turin, seven being its fair share, 
 calculated according to the population of the 
 various cities and districts of the Sardinian 
 kingdom. In this country, throughout Great 
 Britain and Ireland, you will find that property 
 rated to the relief of the poor follows very 
 closely the course of population ; and the only 
 just principle of representation is that the 
 industry, property, intelligence, and population 
 of the country should be, as nearl}" as may be, 
 equally represented, wherever they are to be 
 found. I am not arguing for any mathematical 
 
54 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 precision in this matter, but for such a change 
 as shall really give the House of Commons to 
 the nation. 
 
 The third proposition in your list adopts 
 this principle ; and I only dwell upon it because 
 I know that reformers are too much accustomed 
 to look upon the suffrage as if it were the 
 all-important one, the only important point in 
 their creed. 
 
 With regard to the ballot, it is worthy of 
 remark that no meeting has been held in favour 
 of Reform at which the ballot has not been 
 strongly insisted upon. If Reform is to be 
 granted to gratify and content reformers; if 
 their judgment and unanimity are sufficient to 
 justify or to force its concession, then surely 
 the ballot cannot be denied to us, and I feel 
 certain it will not long be refused. The ballot 
 is not so much a principle as a convenience. 
 It does not bestow the franchise, it guarantees 
 that which the law has already conferred. A 
 voter goes to the poll in a cab, because it is 
 easier and sometimes safer for him than to 
 struggle through an excited crowd on foot. 
 Why should he not be allowed to vote by 
 ballot to shelter him from the more serious 
 annoyance he may be, and is now often sub- 
 jected to, from the importunity of the threats 
 of his landlord, his creditor, or his customer ? 
 When the 200 men in the House of Commons, 
 who are pledged to support the ballot, or when 
 100 of them, or when fifty of them are in 
 earnest, and tell the G-overnment they are 
 resolved to have it, and that they will leave 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 55 
 
 any government tliat will not grant it in the 
 hands of the Philistines on the opposite side 
 of the House, then, and probably not till then, 
 the ballot will be conceded. I dread to think 
 of the consequences of a wide extension of the 
 suffrage in our manufacturing districts should 
 it be obtained without the ballot. It will 
 tempt employers of labour to a hateful tyranny, 
 and it will doom multitudes of the employed, I 
 fear, to a not less hateful condition of political 
 degradation. 
 
 I write this letter chiefly that I may warn 
 you against the pitfalls that are in your path. 
 Your cause is not in the hands of friends. 
 Your forces in the parliamentary field are com- 
 manded by men taken from, or chosen from, 
 your constant and natural opponents, and they 
 lead them, not for your purposes, but for their 
 own. I beseech you to watch well what is pro- 
 posed and what is done. Be the measure great 
 or small, let it be .honest in every part. Include 
 as many as you can in the right of the franchise, 
 insist upon such a- distribution of seats as shall 
 give the House of Commons fairly to the in- 
 dustry, the property, the intelligence, and the 
 population of the country. Demand the ballot 
 as the undeniable right of every man who is 
 called to the poll, and take special care that 
 the old constitutional rule and principle, by 
 which majorities alone shall decide in Par- 
 liamentary elections, shall not be violated. 
 
 I give my hearty support, as I have hereto- 
 fore done, to the proposition contained in your 
 circular. I lament that I cannot join in your 
 
56 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 meeting to-morrow, for I esteem it a great 
 honour to be permitted to act with the in- 
 habitants o£ Birmingham on that question 
 which, a quarter of a century ago, they did so 
 much to advance, and on which their potent 
 voice is once more about to be heard. 
 
 I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON MR. MILNER GIBSON. 
 
 The Eight Hon. T. Milner Gibson, who 
 along with Mr. Bright was defeated at Man- 
 chester at the general election in 1857, was 
 subsequently returned for Ashton-under-Lyne, 
 and on the 28th of January, 1858, a soiree was 
 given at the Ashton Town Hall to celebrate 
 his election. At the meeting, the following 
 letter was read from Mr. Bright : — 
 
 Eochdale, January 20, 1858. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I regret very much that I cannot 
 avail myself of the invitation to your approach- 
 ing public soiree^ so kindly forwarded to me by 
 your committee. I need hardly say that it 
 would have given me extreme pleasure to have 
 seen my friend and late colleague — and may I 
 not say still my colleague — among his new 
 constituency. That you have filled up the 
 vacancy which occurred in the representa- 
 tion of your borough by the return of Mr. 
 Milner Gibson has been a subject of rejoicing 
 in every house in the kingdom which is the 
 house of an honest and intelligent reformer. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 57 
 
 To me it has given greater satisfaction than I 
 have words to express ; for I, who for fourteen 
 years have worked incessantly with him, may 
 perhaps be more capable than almost any other 
 man of appreciating his worth in the House 
 of Commons. To refer only to one subject of 
 legislation — the freedom of the press from 
 taxes intended to crush or to cripple it — I 
 would ask, to whom is the country so much 
 indebted as to your member ? And what 
 services can be greater in a nation pretending 
 or aspiring to be free than to give it a free and 
 cheap press, whereby the whole population may 
 be informed from day to day of all questions 
 affecting the public interests ? I am deeply 
 grateful to you for the course you have taken, 
 and hope I may still be able, though it may 
 be with diminished force, to work with Mr. 
 Gibson in behalf of the true interests of our 
 country. I desire to thank the gentlemen of 
 your committee for their kindness in inviting 
 me, and yourself also for the kindly expressions 
 contained in your letter. 
 
 I am, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. William Hill, Asliton-under-Lyne. 
 
 ON THE CONSPIEACY BILL. 
 
 On the 14th of January, 1858, an attempt was 
 made to assassinate the Emperor of the French, 
 and as it was found that the assassins had pre- 
 pared their plot whilst in England, much feeling 
 was excited in France against this country, and 
 
58 * THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 a despatch was sent from the French Grovern- 
 ment to their ambassador in London, instruct- 
 ing him to ask the Enghsh Government to take 
 such measures as they saw fit with regard to it. 
 The British Government did not reply to the 
 despatch ; but Lord Palmerston brought a bill 
 into the House of Commons on the 8th of Feb- 
 ruary, 1858, to amend the law of conspiracy to 
 murder. Hitherto conspiracy to murder was a 
 simple misdemeanour in this country, punishable 
 in the same manner as a conspiracy to commit 
 any other act which was in violation of the law. 
 Lord Palmerston proposed to make it punish- 
 able by penal servitude for such term of years 
 as the Court should award up to penal servitude 
 for life. 
 
 The bill was unpopular in the country, and 
 caused a good deal of discussion. On the 15th 
 of February, 1858, a meeting was held at the 
 Freemasons' Tavern, London, in opposition to 
 the bill, and '' to protest against the surrender of 
 English liberties at the dictation of a foreign 
 power." The following letter from Mr. Bright 
 was read at the meeting : — 
 
 London, February 12, 1858. 
 Dear Str, — I am not able to attend any public 
 meeting, but I go heartily with the opposition 
 to the Conspiracy Bill. I am very anxious, 
 however, that any opposition to it should be 
 conducted, so as not needlessly to cause any 
 irritation between this country and the people 
 or government of Frs.nce. Our business is 
 simply with our Government. We have to 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 59 
 
 condemn them for their total want of dignity 
 in this matter ; for their shrinking from their 
 duty in giving a proper and respectful but firm 
 reply to the French despatch ; and because they 
 have brought forward a bill which can have 
 no influence in adding to the security of the 
 emperor or of any other person, and can only be 
 pointed to as a hasty and humiliating conces- 
 sion to a hasty and needless demand. We 
 have for years past been judging the government 
 of other nations ; it is now time for us to 
 examine the condition of our own. 
 
 I am, yours, &c., 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON THE CONSPIRACY BILL. 
 
 The second reading of the Conspiracy to 
 Murder Bill was moved by Lord Palmerston on 
 the 19th of February, 1858. Mr. Milner Gib- 
 son moved the following amendment : — " That 
 this House hears with much concern that it is 
 alleged that recent attempts upon the life of the 
 Emperor of the French have been devised in 
 England, and expresses its detestation of such 
 guilty enterprises. That this House is ready 
 at all times to assist in remedying any defects 
 in the criminal law which, after due investiga- 
 tion, are proved to exist; yet it cannot but 
 regret that her Majesty's Government, previous 
 to inviting the House to amend the law of con- 
 spiracy at the present time, have not felt it 
 their duty to make some reply to the important 
 despatch received from the French Government, 
 
6o THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 dated Paris, the 20tli of January, 1858, and 
 whicli has been laid before Parliament." 
 
 The amendment was seconded by Mr. Bright, 
 supported by Mr. Gladstone and others, and 
 carried, 234 voting for it, and 215 against, the 
 Government thus being defeated by 19 votes. 
 
 In consequence of this vote Lord Palmerston 
 resigned office, and Lord Derby was entrusted 
 with the formation of a government. 
 
 For opposing the bill Mr. Bright received a 
 vote of thanks from a public meeting held in 
 Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and he acknowledged 
 the compliment in the following letter to Mr. 
 Joseph Cowen, Jun. : — 
 
 House of Commons, March 1, 1858. 
 
 Dear Sik, — I have received with much plea- 
 sure the announcement contained in your letter 
 of the 27th ult., that a vote of thanks has been 
 passed to Mr. Gibson and myself for the part 
 we have taken in opposing the '' Conspiracy 
 Bill," by a large and enthusiastic public meet- 
 ing of the inhabitants of Newcastle. I am 
 greatly obliged to your townsmen for their kind- 
 ness to me. 
 
 I must say, however, that I took no part in 
 the recent debate. I seconded the resolution 
 proposed by my friend Mr. Gibson, and entirely 
 approved of it, and rejoice at the result which 
 has followed. I congratulate you and the coun- 
 try on the downfall of the very worst Ministry 
 that I have known. The Ministry which has 
 succeeded to it may be deemed a transition 
 Ministry, to be followed, I trust, by one more 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 6i 
 
 entitled to the confidence of the great Liberal 
 party in the country, a party which includes a 
 vast majority of the nation. 
 
 I beg to thank you for the kind expressions 
 towards myself which are contained in your 
 letter. 
 
 I am, yours respectfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Joseph Cowen, Esq. 
 
 ON THE CONDITION OF THE COUNTRY. 
 
 At a meeting in March, 1858, of the unem- 
 ployed workpeople in Birmingham, a memorial 
 to the Queen was passed, praying for an exten- 
 sive system of free emigration. The chairman 
 of the meeting was requested to ask Mr. Bright 
 to present the memorial, and to his communi- 
 cation received the following reply : — 
 
 London, March 25, 1858. 
 
 Deae Sie, — When your memorial reaches me 
 or Mr. Scholefield, we will at once take the 
 usual course with respect to its presentation 
 to the Queen. 
 
 I am sorry to find that the " unemployed " 
 should be so numerous in Birmingham as to 
 induce them to unite, with a view to some 
 public measure for their relief. At this moment 
 the unfavourable condition of the markets of 
 the United States, and of the continent of 
 Europe, will account for much of the suffering 
 which is being endured by the working men of 
 England. I confess, however, that I can see 
 
62 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 no remedy for a large portion of the miscliief 
 complained of, so long as we find our taxes 
 constantly on the increase, and our national 
 expenditure augmenting. 
 
 We are now spending twenty millions a year 
 more than we were spending only a few years 
 back, and our military expenses have doubled 
 since the year 1835, when the Duke of Welling- 
 ton and Sir Eobert Peel were in power. 
 
 This year I suppose we shall raise in taxes 
 at least fifty millions sterling more than will 
 require to be raised by an equal population, 
 living, not in England, but in the United States 
 of America. Surely this will account for much 
 of the evils which you, and the memorialists, 
 and the working classes generally, suff'er ; and 
 I am not surprised that sensible men should 
 wish to quit a country where the burdens are 
 so heavy, and the political privileges of three- 
 fourths of them are so few. Every man who 
 is not prepared to compel a better and more 
 economical government at home should emigrate, 
 or the pauperism of his day will be deeper, and 
 more without remedy, in the days of his chil- 
 dren. I wish I was able to come to Birming- 
 ham and talk to you about these questions. 
 Yours very respectfully, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 O:^ THE REPRESENTATION OF 
 BIRMINGHAM. 
 
 Before the election of Mr. Bright to repre- 
 sent Birmingham in Parliament, the report was 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. [OHN BRIGHT, M.F. 62, 
 
 industriously circulated that, even if elected, lie 
 would make the seat a mere temporary con- 
 venience, to be relinquished as soon as the con- 
 stituency of Manchester regained its senses, 
 and asked him to represent it once more. The 
 rumour turned up again in 1858, and became 
 so commonly talked of as to induce a gentleman 
 connected with the Liberal party in the borough 
 to write to Mr. Bright for an explanation. Mr. 
 Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 Eochdale, May 26, 1858. 
 Deae Sir, — I know nothing of the report to 
 which you allude, and certainly I have said, 
 nothing to justify it. Remembering the cir- 
 cumstances under which I was returned for 
 Birmingham, it is strange that any one should 
 imagine I could prefer any other constituency 
 so long as I remain in the House of Commons, 
 and so long as my opinions and course in 
 Parliament are not opposed to the views of 
 those I have now 'the honour to represent. I 
 know no nobler constituency than that of Bir- 
 mingham, and no member of the House of 
 Commons owes more to a constituency than 
 I owe to that on whose behalf I now speak and 
 vote in Parliament. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE NECESSITY FOR EMIGRA- 
 TION AND ITS CAUSES. 
 
 Read at a meeting held in Glasgow, on the 
 16th of September, 1858, for the purpose of 
 
64 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 considering some scheme to enable the working 
 classes to emigrate to the colonies. The special 
 object of the meeting was for the adoption of 
 resolutions and of a memorial to her Majesty 
 in favour of such a scheme, and for the 
 enrolment of a band of pioneers for British 
 Columbia. 
 
 Eochdale, September 1, 1858. 
 
 Sir, — I have to thank the council of your 
 association for the invitation to your approach- 
 ing meeting. I cannot be present at it, but I 
 hope your discussions will do good to those 
 most interested in them. I have read your 
 resolutions, and I am not surprised that great 
 numbers of the working men are anxious to 
 emigrate ; and. if I were younger and in their 
 position, I should strain every nerve to enable 
 me to find a home in the United States or in 
 one of the British colonies. 
 
 I do not think you are quite correct in the 
 assertions of the resolutions. Generally, the 
 waste lands in the colonies belong to the 
 colonies. Canada belongs to the people of 
 Canada, and Australia to the people of Aus- 
 tralia — and I think any other arrangement 
 would work badly. Any interference by the 
 Home Grovernment would do mischief, and 
 would certainly breed disputes between the 
 Colonial Grovernments and populations. 
 
 Again, I do not know that it is the " bounden 
 duty " of the Government to adopt measures to 
 enable a portion of our population to emigrate ; 
 for if such a duty is laid upon it, I know not 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 65 
 
 where it must end. Every man who thinks he 
 can improve his position abroad may ask to be 
 sent abroad, and, all men having an equal 
 claim upon the Government, the difficulty 
 may become, and soon will become, insur- 
 mountable. 
 
 I do not believe that it is the duty of the 
 Government to provide means of emigration for 
 the people, and therefore I could not support 
 the main point in your resolutions. What I 
 have long told the working men is this : — Here 
 you have no political power, for the arrange- 
 ments of the Reform Bill purposely excluded 
 you. Here you are mixed up with the wretched 
 confusion of European politics, and your sweat 
 is pawned by the crimes of past generations. 
 So thoroughly are you involved in European 
 complications, that in any year you may have 
 your taxes raised, and the demand for your 
 labour destroyed, in pursuit of some phantom 
 in which your rulei-s persuade you that you are 
 interested ; your want of information unfor- 
 tunately renders you easy victims to the 
 delusion practised upon you. JSTot five years 
 ago you rejoiced in peace, and there was a 
 growing prosperity evident in every part of the 
 country. Since that time we have sacrificed 
 forty thousand English lives, and have spent 
 one hundred millions of pounds sterling in one 
 short war. You were consenting parties to 
 that war; your comrades shed their blood in 
 its worthless contests, and you have paid a 
 portion of your day's labour and day's wages 
 ever since, to defray the cost of it ; and your 
 
66 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 voice, SO far as it was heard at all, was in 
 favour of the war. What is gained by it? 
 Who has gained, except the military class and 
 the eaters of taxes ? To working men, these 
 wars with Eussia, with Persia, with China, 
 bring only taxes, want of employment, pre- 
 carious and diminished wages, and that pressure 
 upon the means of living which urges them to 
 look to emigration as a remedy for the evils 
 they endure. And it is a remedy, and the 
 only remedy, until great changes take place in 
 public opinion, and in the law and policy of this 
 country. 
 
 If you emigrate you may reach a country where 
 land is accessible to you, where there are no great 
 hereditary proprietors, as in Scotland, who dare 
 to outrage heaven and mankind by keeping 
 20,000, or 50,000, or 100,000 acres of land de- 
 populated, that a handful of men may enjoy the 
 pleasures of the chase. You may flee to a land 
 where laws of primogeniture are unknown, or 
 known only to be abhorred, and where the soil 
 is left free to the industry and enterprise of 
 the whole people. You may find a home where 
 such destructive delusions as the " balance of 
 power " are unheard of, and where the toil of 
 the nation of which you have become a part is 
 not absorbed to the amount of fifty millions 
 sterling a year to pay for wars that are past, 
 and for preparations of wars that are to come. 
 You may become a part of some youthful and 
 growing people, with whom a feudal proprietor- 
 ship of lands, national debts, great armaments, 
 oppressive taxes, and a sham representation, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, AIR 67 
 
 are but traditions of a melanclioly past, to be 
 studied only as rocks to be avoided in its new 
 and more prosperous career. 
 
 If I do not see how the Government can be 
 called upon to provide the means of emi- 
 gration, do not suppose I think emigration 
 unwise; on the contrary, I feel assured that, 
 with the past and present policy of England, 
 labour will find its best reward in Canada, in 
 the States, or in Australia. I would prefer 
 that Englishmen should stay at home — that 
 our country should be well governed, that its 
 foreign policy should be just and rational, that 
 its burden of taxes should be light ; but, seeing 
 small chance of such a state of things, I not 
 only cannot blame, but I must applaud the 
 resolution of every man who is determined, by 
 his industry and his economy, to provide the 
 means of conveying himself and his family to 
 another, and to him and them, a more happy 
 country. 
 
 Government cannot enable 3^ou to emigrate. 
 Many of you can, by severe effort and saving, 
 obtain the means to cross the ocean ; to many, 
 I fear, this is not possible. I can only hope, 
 for them, that our countrymen may become 
 wiser, and that, under the influence of a more 
 sensible policy and a greater economy in the 
 national expenditure, we may be entering on a 
 period of prolonged peace, during which even 
 the poorest and most suffering of our popu- 
 lation, may make some progress in the way of 
 comfort and independence. 
 
 I must ask your excuse for writing so long, a 
 ¥ 2 
 
68 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 letter, and the more, as it is opposed in some 
 degree to your view. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. Andrew Cumming, 414, Argyle Street, Glasgow. 
 
 ON THE CURREKCY. 
 
 A number of the inhabitants of Birmingham, 
 under the auspices of Mr Edmund Taunton, 
 haying addressed a memorial to Mr. Bright, 
 soliciting his " advocacy in Parliament in behalf 
 of the interest of labour against that of money," 
 Mr. Bright sent the following reply : — 
 
 Eochdale, January 12, 1859. 
 
 Sir, — I have received a memorial with many 
 signatures, of which yours is the first, requesting 
 me to endeavour to procure " the abolition of 
 the monopoly in money." It might be deemed 
 a suJB&cient answer to say that my time and 
 thoughts are just now so fully occupied with a 
 great public question, that I cannot undertake 
 anything further ; that is certainly the position 
 m which I am placed, but I will not confine 
 myself to such a reply. 
 
 To tell you the truth, I do not comprehend 
 what you complain of, or what you wish to be 
 done, for in the many conversations I have had 
 with persons who thought themselves well 
 informed on what is called " Our Monetary 
 System," I have never had the good fortune to 
 find any two of them agreeing upon the exact 
 grievance, or the precise remedy. I have 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 69 
 
 always thought this a great misfortune, because 
 until I could see clearly where the wrong was, 
 or is, I could have small hope of discovering a 
 remedy. I do not defend what exists in con- 
 nection with the Bank of England — much of it 
 seems to be at variance with the laws of political 
 economy ; but I find many of the propositions 
 made by those who wish for a change are even 
 less in accordance with that science, and long 
 discussion with those who most loudly denounce 
 the present system only leaves me more puzzled 
 than before. I confess, therefore, that I am 
 not the most suitable person to undertake the 
 great change which I presume you are looking 
 for. I will willingly support any inquiry by 
 Parliament, in the hope that the truth may at 
 last be discovered ; but I do not feel competent 
 to teach Parliament and the country on the 
 abstruse question to which you have drawn 
 my attention. When it comes before the House 
 of Commons, I wi-ll give it all the consideration 
 in my power. I wish I could send you a more 
 satisfactory reply. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Butght. 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 In 1859, Mr. Disraeh, on behalf of Lord 
 Derby's Government, introduced* a Reform Bill 
 in the House of Commons. It consisted mainly 
 of a string of ridiculous clauses, artfully de- 
 signed to give the measure an appearance of 
 
70 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 extending the franchise ; but with the real 
 object of continuing the exclusion of the work- 
 ing classes from the suffrage. The Bill was 
 exceedingly unpopular in the country, and on 
 the 31st of March, at the close of the debate on 
 the second reading in the House of Commons, 
 it was rejected, and a dissolution of Parliament 
 ensued. At the end of 1858 Mr. Bright, in 
 response to a request from some of the friends 
 of ^Reform, had drawn up a scheme for a Eeform 
 Bill, and his proposals became again, at this 
 crisis, the subject of discussion. Reform was 
 now the all-engrossing question of the hour, 
 and the following letter from Mr. Samuel 
 Morley shows how Reformers were looking to 
 Mr. Bright for guidance : — 
 
 Parliamentary Eeform Committee, 
 15, Kiog Street, Cheapside, 
 April 7, 1859. 
 
 Dear Sir, — At a conference of friends of 
 Reform, in November last, convened by this Com- 
 mittee, at the Gruildhall Coffee House, you were 
 earnestly and unanimously requested to prepare 
 a bill intended to meet the wishes of earnest re- 
 formers. You have already explained the prin- 
 ciples of your measure to the country, but no 
 formal declaration has been made of its exact 
 contents. On the eve of a general election, it 
 is most important that the main provisions of 
 your bill should be distinctly laid before the 
 country. On behalf of this committee I venture 
 therefore to request you that you will, in the 
 manner you think most advisable, enable us to 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 71 
 
 carry out this view. "We shall be glad of your 
 reply at the earliest convenience. 
 
 I am, dear sir, yours truly, 
 
 S. MOKLET. 
 John Bright, Esq., M.P. 
 
 To this letter Mr. Bright senfc the following 
 reply : — 
 
 Eeform Club, April 9, 1859. 
 
 My deae Sir, — It seems scarcely needful, 
 after the explanations I have publicly given of 
 the principles of my bill, to enter into any long 
 statement as to its exact provisions. I will 
 endeavour, however, in a few words, to place 
 before you what I intended to propose to 
 Parliament, if the session had not been sud- 
 denly interrupted by the dissolution which is 
 impending. 
 
 With regard to the franchise, I propose, in 
 counties, to extend the right of voting to all 
 occupiers of the value of lOZ. and upwards, with 
 the proviso that, in every such occupancy, not 
 less than 6Z. of the value shall be in a dwelling- 
 house. The object of this is to prevent the 
 fabrication of fictitious votes by pretended let- 
 tings of land where no real tenancy may 
 exist. I propose to extend the right of voting 
 (possessed by freeholders of tbe value of 405. 
 and upwards) in England and Wales, to Scot- 
 land, and to place the elective rights of free- 
 holders in Scotland upon the same footing as 
 in England and Wales in every respect. 
 
 With regard to the borough franchise, I pro- 
 pose the present municipal franchise with two 
 
72 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 variations. I'he municipal franchise is now 
 possessed by every man wlio is a ratepayer, 
 whetlier his rates are paid by himself or by his 
 landlord, and without regard to the value of 
 the property he occupies, or the amount of his 
 rating. I propose to adopt the same arrange- 
 ment down to a certain point : that is, I would 
 give the vote to all persons rated at not less 
 than 3Z., or occupying to the value of not less 
 than 4L per annum, whether the rates are paid 
 by the tenant or by the landlord. Below that 
 point, in order not to exclude any industrious 
 and frugal man, wishful to have a vote, I would 
 allow any person being a rated occupier, to 
 secure his vote by undertaking to pay and by 
 paying his own rates. This is the only test I 
 would apply, and I think its effect would be to 
 exclude none but such as are not likely to have 
 any independence, and such as are utterly 
 careless as to the possession of a vote. 
 
 The Municipal Act requires a residence of 
 two years and eight months before a person 
 can be placed upon the burgess roll. This is 
 done by a clause inserted in the House of Lords, 
 and was a concession of the House of Commons 
 to the apprehensions of the Peers. It assumes 
 to be directed specially against the poor, and 
 to be conservative in its character ; whilst, 
 in fact, it acts almost equally upon every class, 
 lessening the number of burgesses, without being 
 a guarantee for their independent character, or 
 for their superiority in any respect. I propose 
 to adhere to the present term of residence for 
 parliamentary electors — that is, to have a twelve 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP. 73 
 
 montlis' residence. This is, in fact, a sixteen 
 months' residence, for no person can now be 
 placed on the register, which comes into force 
 on the 1st of December in any year, who was 
 not in occupation of his premises on the 31st 
 of July of the year preceding ; and if his occu- 
 pation began on the 1st of August, his residence 
 must be two years and four months before he 
 can give a vote. Under the present law, the 
 occupation of every person who becomes entitled 
 to vote will vary from sixteen months to twenty- 
 eight months, or an average of twenty- two 
 months. Surely this is long enough, and no- 
 thing but ignorance of the law and the facts, 
 or a dread of numbers, can induce any man to 
 wish for any longer period of residence. 
 
 In addition to this general proposition to 
 extend the right of voting in boroughs, I pro- 
 pose to give the franchise to occupiers of 
 apartments ; that is, to lodgers, paying a rent 
 of not less than IjOZ. per annum, subject to the 
 same period of residence as in the case of rated 
 occupiers, and whether the rent be paid half- 
 yearly or at any shorter period. 
 
 To all voters, whether in counties or in 
 boroughs, I would give the ballot, and my bill 
 provides for the appointment of a commission 
 to decide upon the best means of securing 
 secrecy, and expedition, and order in the taking 
 of votes at elections ; that is, to discover the 
 best means of voting by ballot. 
 
 I need not now enter into any details about 
 the disfranchisement of small boroughs, and 
 the redistribution of seats ; my schedules have 
 
74 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 been and are before tlie public. They wlio 
 regard them as extreme and hurtful are they 
 who wish the House of Commons to be the co- 
 adjutor of the House of Lords, rather than a 
 fair representation of the people. I believe the 
 time will come when my propositions on this 
 point will be considered as moderate as I now 
 believe them to be just. 
 
 I regret very much that I have been unable 
 to introduce my bill to the House of Commons. 
 I feel certain that I could have removed some 
 misapprehensions with regard to it, created 
 chiefly by the untruthful criticisms of the news- 
 papers in the interest of the two aristocratic 
 parties. I could not bring in my bill before 
 the Government brought in theirs, and I could 
 not with advantage have asked the House to 
 consider it whilst that of the Government was 
 under discussion. The ground was cleared 
 when the great division was announced; but 
 on the very evening when I intended to give 
 notice of the introduction of my bill, we were 
 informed of the impending dissolution of Par- 
 liament, and thus all chance of proceeding with 
 any important business was at an end. 
 
 The question of Reform is now before the 
 constituencies. The quality and extent of the 
 measure to be passed in the new Parliament 
 will depend on the earnestness of the existing 
 body of electors. I hope they may act up to 
 the occasion. 
 
 I am, truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Samuel Morley, Esq. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 75 
 
 ON THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA. 
 
 WRITTEN TO A GENTLEMAN IN INDIA. 
 
 Eochdale, January 14, 1860. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have received your letter on 
 the subject of your next meeting, and inform- 
 ing me of the petitions which have been 
 forwarded to my friend, Mr. John Dickenson, 
 jun. I shall have great pleasure in present- 
 ing the petitions to the House of Commons, and 
 in giving such help as may be in my power to 
 your views. I am not sanguine that we shall 
 easily produce any change in the Indian 
 government. The whole concern is one of 
 patronage — and those who now hold the good 
 things will not willingly give them up. The 
 English people, too, are very slow, and very 
 careless about everything that does not imme- 
 diately affect them. They cannot be excited to 
 any effort for India except under the pressure 
 of some great calamity, and when that pressure 
 is removed they fall back into their usual state 
 of apathy. 
 
 The English Government has always too 
 much on its hands. To keep itself in power is 
 considered its first duty, and there is little 
 force or leisure to do anything else. It hands 
 over India to Sir John Hobhouse, or Mr. 
 Herries, or Sir C. Wood, or Lord Stanley, and 
 takes no further interest in it until an in- 
 surrection is announced, or a loan in England 
 is necessary ; and the Indian minister is ex- 
 pected never to trouble his colleagues except in 
 
76 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 the last extremity. Parliament cares about 
 India little more than the Cabinet ; and thus 
 the interests of your ,vast population are left 
 to the tender mercies of an exclusive service 
 whose main object of adoration is patronage. 
 I almost despair of anything being done here, 
 but you may rely on my honest assistance 
 whenever there seems a chance of doing any- 
 thing. 
 
 I am much obliged to Mr. Norton and to 
 others of your friends for their too kind mention 
 of me at the meetings, the report of which you 
 have sent me. 
 
 I am, with great respect. 
 
 Yours sincerely, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 H. Nelson, Esq. 
 
 OK STRIKES, AND THE EXCLUSION 
 OF THE WORKING CLASSES FROM 
 THE SUFFRAGE. 
 
 Written in answer to a letter Mr. Bright had 
 received from a spinner and manufacturer in 
 Blackburn, in which a complaint was made 
 that education, literary and religious, had 
 failed to teach the working classes wisdom in 
 relation to their own interests. 
 
 Rochdale, November 3, 1860. 
 
 My dear Sie, — I am glad to hear from you, 
 
 and to learn that your health is better. I am, 
 
 however, very sorry for the cause of your 
 
 writing to me, and can understand the disap- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP. 77 
 
 pointment you feel at the small result of so 
 many efforts to instruct the working popu- 
 lation around you. It is not to be expected 
 that the workmen in our population should be 
 wiser than other classes, and we know well 
 that other classes have, whenever able to do it, 
 enforced combination prices, and endeavoured 
 to make a scarcity in the articles in which they 
 have dealt. /^The fact is, that among all class^ 
 there is a lamentable ignorance of the laws 
 which ought to regulate labour and trade, and 
 that the study of political economy is totally 
 neglected in the education of the whole people. 
 At this moment the views of a large portion of 
 the highest class — I mean highest in position, 
 in wealth, and in scholarship, — are wholly un- 
 sound on these subjects, and, making allowance 
 for difference of circumstances, they support 
 precisely the same principles as those coi^^ 
 tended for by trades' unionsl] At first sightj 
 nothing appears more clear to a workman than 
 that it is a great advantage to him to be able 
 to force his employer to give him higher 
 wages ; and for this end, an end apparently so 
 desirable, almost everything will appear to the 
 mind of the workman proper and justifiable. 
 He considers the whole matter to be a struggle^ 
 between capital and labour, and that anything 
 is fair in his fight with the claims of capital. 
 Hence the folly and injustice of many of the 
 proceedings of the trades' unions, and the dis- 
 cord which arises between the class of workmen 1 
 and the class of employers. 
 
 Along with the mischief which springs from 
 
78 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ignorance on these questions, there is another 
 source of evil, to which I think employers 
 ought to turn their attention. The whole body 
 of workmen, speaking in general terms, are 
 excluded — purposely excluded — from the fran- 
 chise. They have no political position, and 
 therefore, practically, they have no politics. 
 In this respect they are no more free than the 
 labourers in Austria or in Russia, and con- 
 sequently they have no inducement to consider 
 political questions, and to examine or to sus- 
 pect how far their condition is affected by the 
 policy and acts of the Government of the 
 country. They are shut out from the political 
 world ; they are told that they ought to have, 
 and shall have, no opinion and no voice in the 
 direction of public affairs ; that they are an 
 ignorant and a dangerous class ; and that what 
 are called the institutions of their country 
 would not be safe if they were permitted to 
 take any part in them. The inevitable result 
 is that these men, growing every day in in- 
 formation, aud in restlessness and discontent, 
 rather it may be with their social than their 
 political condition, and growing also in numbers 
 and in the means of organization, maintain a 
 contest with the only authority they see and 
 feel, namely, with their employers, who are to 
 them almost all they know and comprehend of 
 superior power and of Governmental control. 
 
 The fact is, our system of political exclusion 
 has this effect, it makes of the working classes 
 a nation, separated by a gulf, passable only by 
 few of them, from that other nation to which 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 79 
 
 the existing constitution pretends to give, 
 though it does not honestly give, political 
 power. There is thus no real amalgamation of 
 classes. The class receiving wages is shut out 
 from the questions and the interests which 
 occupy the minds and engage the energies of 
 the employing class. Its members are limited 
 to the consideration of their own individual, 
 and local, and class interests ; and their mental 
 activity is devoted to something like a servile 
 war, because everything that is broader and 
 greater is excluded from their view. So long 
 as the employers of this county, and of the 
 neighbouring counties, are content to allow the 
 governing class to refuse the rights of citizen- 
 ship to the industrious men, without whose 
 skill and toil our national greatness could have 
 no existence, so long will these men, whose 
 general intelligence and whose energies are 
 acknowledged by all, concentrate that intelli- 
 gence and that energy on efforts to amend 
 their condition 'within those limits of action 
 which are open to them. If the capitalists 
 practically assert that the workman is born 
 only to labour, and that he is incompetent to 
 take any part in those great discussions on 
 public affairs which are so deeply interesting 
 to the more fortunate and privileged of his 
 countrymen, and so important to all — and if, 
 unhappily, the workman should practically 
 acquiesce in this view, and should abstain from 
 efforts to invest himself with the rights of 
 citizenship, — let us be assured that his activity 
 will not cease — that his energies will not 
 
8o THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 slumber. He may not read and tliink politics ; 
 he may not canvass for and conduct elections ; 
 lie may not strive to influence tlie deliberations 
 of Parliament, and to urge on or to check the 
 action of the administration ; but he will not 
 be idle, and his own condition and that of his 
 class will not have lost all interest in his eyes. 
 He will ignore the obstacles to his well-being 
 which arise from violations of economic prin- 
 ciples by the Government; he will take no 
 strong interest in the taxation of the country, 
 or in the expenditure of the State ; he will 
 conclude that the only mode of bettering his 
 condition is in an advance of wages, forced 
 from capital, it may be, at the risk of its 
 destruction, and gained and secured only by 
 combinations which in the long-run must be as 
 injurious to himself as to the employer against 
 whom he is contending. 
 
 I have never denied the legal or the moral 
 right of workmen or employers to combine ; 
 but I believe there is not one case in a hundred 
 where it is wise to exercise this right. And, 
 looking at the consequences of the strikes we 
 have seen in this country, it is amazing that so 
 many men of sense, so many men competent to 
 works of skill and ingenuity, should take any 
 part in them. I do not expect in our time that 
 these deplorable transactions will come to an 
 end, but I am persuaded that they would occur 
 much more rarely, and be attended with less 
 of bitterness and of that obstinate folly which 
 now so often distinguishes them, if the wall of 
 partition between classes were broken down by 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P, 8i 
 
 the admission of the great " labour interest " 
 into the rights of citizenship. Then the same 
 questions would interest us all ; the same 
 grievances, where grievances exist, would be 
 seen to affect us all; the same great public 
 objects would stimulate us all ; and instead of 
 being, as we now are, two nations in one 
 country, having different ends and adverse 
 sympathies, we should have objects and pur- 
 poses in common, to the incalculable and per- 
 manent gain of the whole people. 
 
 I am not now propounding a new doctrine. I 
 have held this opinion ever since I have con- 
 sidered social and political questions. I have 
 as much interest in the harmonious working of 
 our industrial organization, and in the welfare 
 of my country, as any other man has, and I 
 give it as my deliberate judgment, that it is the 
 interest and the duty of all the employers of 
 labour amongst us to confer upon the work- 
 man, whose labour we purchase, and whose 
 wages we provide, those rights of franchise and 
 of citizenship which we ourselves possess. 
 Some men imagine that the existing exclusion 
 can be perpetuated, and that it is safer to 
 repress and exclude than to admit. This is the 
 common delusion of those who shut their eyes 
 to all that is^passing around them, and who, in 
 their timidity, adhere to a course which, more 
 than any other, is dangerous and untenable. 
 
 The workmen are great in numbers, growing 
 in intelligence, and their power of combination 
 is without limit. They will contend for them- 
 selves, by themselves, if condemned to remain 
 
 G 
 
82 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 a separate and suspected order in our social 
 system ; and this contest lias in it the seeds of 
 future and tremendous evil to them and to the 
 great industrial interests of the country. I 
 wish to unite all, to have no separate interests ; 
 to blend all in a common sense of common 
 rights, and thus to give peace and strength 
 where now discord and weakness too much 
 prevail. 
 
 I do not write this to you as though you 
 differed from me in opinion on this subject, but 
 I take the opportunity which your letter affords 
 me of expressing to you the views I honestly 
 hold, earnestly hoping they may one day become 
 those of all the employers of labour in the 
 manufacturing counties of England. 
 
 I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE INCOME-TAX, AND ON TAXA- 
 TION AND REPRESENTATION. 
 
 Written to the chairman of an anti-income- 
 tax meeting at Birmingham. 
 
 4, Hanover Street, London, 
 March 11, 1862. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have received your letter and a 
 copy of the resolution on the subject of the 
 income-tax, and thank you for them. I am 
 not surprised at the hostility which you de- 
 scribe as existing in the minds of many persons 
 in Birmingham against this tax ; in truth, I 
 am only surprised at the patience — I think I 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 83 
 
 may say the culpable patience — with which it 
 has been so long endured. At the same time 
 I regret to say that I cannot see the wisdom of 
 the course you recommend with a view to pro- 
 cure the repeal or alteration of the tax, and it 
 does not appear to me to offer any prospect of 
 success. I cannot, therefore, pledge myself to 
 act as you wish ; that is, to undertake to " divide 
 the House against the present income-tax laws 
 on every possible occasion." 
 
 The evil of which you complain is not to be 
 got rid of through the direct action of Parlia- 
 ment, and the course you recommend to my 
 colleague and to myself would, I fear, only 
 subject you to disappointment and us to ridi- 
 cule. The House of Commons, and, I may say, 
 Parliament as a whole, including both Houses, 
 finds no special grievance in heavy expenditure 
 and heavy taxation; and the inequalities of 
 which you justly complain tell in favour of the 
 rich, and especially in favour of the owners 
 of what is called real property. It is not from 
 Parliament, therefore, in the first instance that 
 you are to look for redress. 
 
 The income-tax was imposed in the year 
 1842, to enable Sir Robert Peel to begin the 
 reform of the tariJBT. The tariff has been to a 
 great extent reformed; and, although the 
 custom duties produce more now than they did 
 in 1842, the income-tax remains with a heavier 
 pressure and a wider field. The cause is on 
 the surface. Parliament consents now to an 
 annual expenditure about twenty millions in 
 excess of that of 1842, and the income-tax 
 
 G 2 
 
84 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 raises one-lialf of the increased taxation required 
 by this increased expenditure. If I complain 
 to Grovernment or to Parliament that this ex- 
 penditure is unnecessary, and this taxation 
 burdeilsome, Government and Parliament tell 
 me that the nation is not of my opinion, and 
 that the people do not blame the one, or suffer 
 sensibly under the other. 
 
 I believe a very heavy taxation can rarely, 
 perhaps never, be levied with much regard to 
 justice. In this country, where the rich only 
 govern, equality and fairness in taxation are 
 impossible. The rich may spend the public 
 revenues with a careless prodigality, but they 
 will fight with a desperate unity of purpose to 
 place the burden on the whole people, with 
 little regard to the means of those who are to 
 bear it. In the United Kingdom there are 
 seven millions of men who pay taxes, and of 
 these about six millions are never consulted as 
 to the amount which shall be spent, or the 
 mode in which it shall be raised. Of the one 
 million who are apparently consulted, it may 
 be said that political power is so unequally 
 apportioned among them, that less than one- 
 fourth of them nominally elect a majority of 
 the members of the House of Commons, by 
 which seventy millions of taxes are annually 
 collected from seven millions of men, which 
 determines the mode in which this vast sum of 
 money shall be raised, and how it shall be 
 expended. 
 
 I have now had an experience of nearly 
 twenty years in the House of Commons, and 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 85 
 
 during tliat time I have given such assistance 
 as I could to every attempt to keep down ex- 
 penditure, and to make taxation mpre equal and 
 more just. The expenditure is now twenty 
 millions more than it was when I entered Par- 
 liament. Since 1853-4, when Lord Palmerston 
 and Lord John Russell led the nation into war 
 with Russia, the public exchequer has been 
 open to the rapacity of the military services, 
 and they have revelled, without check, in the 
 wealth which industry has created. These old 
 statesmen, steeped in the traditions of the last 
 generation, conceive the grandeur of a country 
 to consist in the vastness of its taxation and 
 the extent of its military preparations, and they 
 have succeeded in so exciting the fears and im- 
 posing upon the understanding of the middle 
 classes of the people, as to induce them to tole- 
 rate a constantly-growing extravagance in the 
 executive government, and a burden of taxa- 
 tion which in a time of peace would have driven 
 their forefathers into revolt. 
 
 The English middle class believes itself to be 
 represented, while its representation is mainly 
 a fraud. The great mass of the people are pur- 
 posely excluded from all representation. Force 
 is no longer used as the instrument of tyranny 
 amongst us ; but fraud, and delusion, and alarm, 
 and panic are found in our day more profitable 
 than force. I write to you, who, in respect to 
 the subject of our correspondence, are a repre- 
 sentative of the middle class ; and I say that 
 until that great class, in many things so intelli- 
 gent, so moral, and, when it rises to any great 
 
86 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 duty, so powerful, sliall examine public affairs 
 for itself, and sliall shake itself free from the 
 impositions which are so impudently practised 
 upon it, I see no hope of any sensible diminu- 
 tion of the burden of taxation, or of any more 
 just apportionment of that taxation, from which 
 it is impossible to escape. If the middle class 
 prefer an alliance with the aristocratic or ruling 
 party, to the cordial co-operation and help of 
 the great nation now excluded from the fran- 
 chise and from all political power, they must 
 be content with a profligate government ex- 
 penditure, and a taxation burdensome from its 
 amount, and insulting from its inequality and 
 injustice. 
 
 I hope I need not tell you how glad I shall 
 be to witness an expression of public opinion in 
 favour of economy. The old watchwords of the 
 Liberal party were "Peace, Retrenchment, and 
 Reform." Of late years, under the leadership 
 of statesmen who care for none of these things, 
 the party has become feeble, debauched, and" 
 humiliated, and has trampled in the dust the 
 only principles on which it had any pretence to 
 become a party. 
 
 I cannot give you any hope of diminished or 
 more equal taxation from the House of Com- 
 mons. I should only add another to the many 
 delusions practised on the people, if I were to 
 tell them, after nearly twenty years' experience, 
 that anything can be done there, in your direc- 
 tion, except under a pressure which cannot be 
 resisted, and which can only come from with- 
 out. I shall rejoice if that pressure be created. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. Z-j 
 
 and it will give me infinite satisfaction to assist 
 it and to obey it. 
 
 I am, with great respect, yours sincerely, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 To J. S. Manton, Esq., Regent Works, Birmingham. 
 
 THE INCOME-TAX. 
 
 In a further letter on the subject Mr. Bright 
 wrote : — 
 
 Rochdale, March 21, 1862. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have to thank you for your 
 second letter. I do not know that I can add 
 much to what I have already written to you. 
 
 If Birmingham is in earnest in a movement 
 against the income-tax, and if other towns will 
 join in the movement, the tax can be overthrown; 
 and I am not sure that it will not be overthrown 
 more easily than made more equal and just. I 
 can vote against the income-tax with a clear 
 conscience, because I believe the whole sum 
 annually raised by it might be saved by a 
 Government anxious to do its duty to the 
 people. But I must tell you plainly, that so long 
 as there is an apparent popular acquiescence in 
 the present expenditure, and particularly in that 
 branch of it which is connected with the military 
 services, I do not believe that the tax will either 
 be overthrown, or its pressure sensibly miti- 
 gated. 
 
 I am prepared to vote for any honest attempt 
 to make the tax more equal, as I am prepared 
 to vote for its abolition. With regard to the 
 precise course to be taken in the House of Com- 
 
8S THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 mons in dealing with tlie subject, I must be left 
 at liberty to do that which at the time may seem 
 most judicious. 
 
 I think you should correspond with all the 
 principal towns in the kingdom, if you wish 
 your views on the income-tax to prevail. 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 . J. S. Manton, Esq., Kegent Works, Birmingham. 
 
 ON THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 From the beginning of the terrible struggle 
 between the Northern and Southern States 
 of America, Mr. Bright was the friend and 
 champion of the North and their cause, and 
 many enthusiastic acknowledgments have siuce 
 been made to him by the American people of 
 the services he rendered to their country at that 
 time. The first public recognition he received, 
 was from the Chamber of Commerce of the State 
 of New York, the members of which, at a meet- 
 ing on Thursday, the 6th of March, 1862, una- 
 nimously adopted a resolution recording their 
 gratitude for his eloquent and fearless advocacy 
 of '' the principles of constitutional liberty and 
 international justice for which the American 
 people were contending." 
 
 This resolution having been forwarded to 
 Mr. Bright, he replied as follows : — 
 
 London, April 4, 1862. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have received through the hands 
 of the Hon. Mr. Adams, the Minister of the 
 
f UNIVERSITY ) 
 
 OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 89 
 
 United States, your letter of the 8tli of Mareli, 
 and the resolution unanimously adopted by the 
 Chamber of Commerce of the State of JSTew 
 York on the 6th of March. 
 
 I wish you to convey to the eminent body of 
 gentlemen over whom you preside the expres- 
 sion of my sense of the honour they have con- 
 ferred upon me, and of the pleasure which it 
 gives me to know that the course I have taken 
 in reference to the events which are now pass- 
 ing in your country has met with the warm 
 approval of those whom they represent. I 
 accept their most kind resolution, not only as 
 honourable to myself, but as a manifestation of 
 friendly feeling to the great majority of my 
 countrymen, whose true sentiments I believe I 
 have not mistaken or misrepresented, when I 
 have spoken on the side of your government 
 and people. 
 
 I believe there is no other country in which 
 men have been so free and so prosperous as in 
 yours, and that there is no other political con- 
 stitution now in existence, in the preservation 
 of which the human race is so deeply interested, 
 as in that under which you live. This is true, 
 beyond all doubt, when applied to the Free 
 States of your Union ; I trust the time is not 
 distant when it will be true all over your vast 
 territory, from the St. Lawrence to the Gulf of 
 Mexico. \ 
 
 Notwithstanding much misapprehension and \ 
 some recent excitement, I am sure that an over- I 
 whelming majority of the people of the United / 
 Kingdom will rejoice at the success of your/ 
 
90 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 government, and at the complete restoration of 
 your Union. 
 
 While asking you to convey the expression of 
 my grateful feelings to the members of your 
 chamber, I desire to tender to you my thanks 
 for the very kind letter from yourself which 
 accompanied the resolution. 
 
 I am, with gi^eat respect, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 To P. Perit, Esq., President of the Chamber 
 of Commerce of the State of New York. 
 
 ON MR. EUBERY'S CASE. 
 
 In 1863 Mr. Bright, by his intercession with 
 the American Government, obtained the pardon 
 of a young Englishman from Birmingham, 
 named Rubery, who had gone to America, and 
 who, during the war, had been found guilty of 
 the crime of treason, and sentenced to a term 
 of imprisonment. An article containing some 
 inaccuracies, purporting to give an account of 
 the affair, was copied into several newspapers, 
 and amongst others into the Siar^ to the editor 
 of which Mr. Bright wrote the following 
 letter : — 
 
 London, January 6, 1864. 
 
 Sm, — In the paragraph in your paper of this 
 morning on the subject of the pardon of Mr. 
 Rubery, copied from the Birmingham Daily 
 Post, there are some mistakes which I will 
 thank you to allow me to correct. It was Mr. 
 Rubery' s brother, Mr. John Rubery of Bir- 
 mingham, who applied to me, and asked me to 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 91 
 
 endeavour to procure his liberation. I have 
 done nothing in the matter in consequence of 
 any representation to me from Mr. Sturge, or 
 from any member of his family, or from any 
 other person. Mr. Rubery was arrested at 
 San Francisco on the charge of being con- 
 cerned in fitting out a vessel called the CJiajp- 
 man, for the purpose of privateering under the 
 flag of the '' Confederate States." When he 
 was arrested and imprisoned, I wrote to a friend 
 of mine in America with a view to obtain a 
 lenient consideration of his case. The President 
 very properly declined to interfere in the matter 
 whilst it was in course of law. Eubery was 
 tried and convicted with some of his associates. 
 He was not sentenced to death — the Govern- 
 ment of the United States, so far as I know, 
 has never yet inflicted that punishment for 
 treason — but he was sentenced to ten years' 
 imprisonment and a fine of 10,000 dollars. 
 When I saw the report of his conviction, I 
 again wrote to my friend in Washington, and 
 he brought the case before the President, and 
 I am informed, in a letter dated the 15th of 
 December, that the President has pardoned 
 Eubery, and that the pardon will issue as soon 
 as the papers can be prepared. I know nothing 
 of the previous character or conduct of Mr. 
 Eubery, but I believe the statements in the 
 paragraph in question are much exaggerated. 
 Mrs. Eubery, the mother of the misguided young 
 man, is a widow lady well known and much 
 esteemed in Birmingham, and I need not tell 
 you that it has given me much pleasure to have 
 
92 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 been able, in part, to relieve ber great anxiety 
 as to tbe fate of ber son. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE MALT-TAX. 
 
 Eead at a public meeting beld in tbe Town 
 Hall, Birmingbam, on Tbursday evening, tbe 
 14tb of April, 1864, to discuss tbe question of 
 tbe total repeal of tbe tax. 
 
 London, April 11, 1864. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I must ask your committee to 
 excuse me, if I am unable to be present and to 
 take part in tbe meeting to be beld on Tburs- 
 day next. I cannot, witbout tbe greatest in- 
 convenience, leave town during tbis week. I 
 may say, bowever, tbat I could not, if present 
 at tbe meeting, undertake tbe part you wisb to 
 assign to me, for I am not sufficiently informed 
 on tbe matter to be able to assert wbat is con- 
 tained in tbe resolution you wisb me to move. 
 In taking off taxes, as in putting tbem on, it is 
 tbe duty of Parliament to consult tbe interests 
 of tbe people. Witb my present information I 
 would prefer to return to tbe people tbe six 
 millions raised from tea or sugar, ratber tban 
 tbat sum raised from malt. If I joined in a 
 vote against tbe malt-tax, it would be witb a 
 view to force a reduction of expenditure, and 
 not because I tbougbt tbe malt-tax so bad as 
 tbe tea or tbe sugar tax. For tbe present 
 session, bowever, tbere will be no reductions 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 93 
 
 of taxation beyond those already proposed by 
 the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and there will 
 be time enough for tea, sugar, and beer to ifight 
 their battle in public discussion before any one 
 of them is likely to be further interfered with. 
 I think a moderate attention to economy would 
 enable Parliament to repeal any one of the four 
 great taxes — on income, tea, sugar, or beer — 
 and the diminution of the public expenditure 
 by the amount of one of these taxes would be 
 felt to be a great relief to the public. I shall 
 read the report of your proceedings with much 
 interest. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE LICENSING SYSTEM. 
 
 Written in reply to an inquiry respecting 
 Mr. Bright' s speech in a recent debate on Mr. 
 Lawson's (now Sir Wilfrid Lawson) Bill, as to 
 whether he had advocated the investing of Town 
 Councils with the power to suppress licensing. 
 
 London, June 13, 1864. 
 Dkar Sir, — If it is desired to put the 
 licensing power into the hands of the residents 
 of any town or district, 1 think the municipal 
 corporations are the proper channels for exer- 
 cising that power, and they would give licences 
 freely or not, as public opinion directed them. 
 I did not propose to give tbem the power to 
 shut up all the public-houses and beershops, 
 but only for the future to restrict the granting 
 
94 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 of licences ; they would also have the power to 
 suspend or withdraw licences in cases where 
 there were just grounds of complaint against 
 those to whom they have already been granted. 
 I do not urge this proposition with much con- 
 fidence — there is something to be said against 
 it ; but I think it better than the schemes of 
 the friends of the Permissive Bill. I cannot 
 consent to the rough-and-ready way of dealing 
 with the question which many friends of tem- 
 perance in their zeal seem disposed to advocate. 
 I think they would inflict a great injustice in 
 many cases, and might create a strong reac- 
 tionary feeling against their own principles. 
 The case is full of dijB&culty, and I speak with 
 hesitation upon it. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Eobert Martin, Esq., Warrington. 
 
 ON IRISH QUESTIONS. 
 
 Eead at a meeting held on Thursday, the 
 29th of December, 1864, at the Rotunda, 
 Dublin, for the purpose of promoting an asso- 
 ciation for the following objects : — 
 
 1. A reform of the law of landlord and 
 tenant, securing to the tenant full compen- 
 sation for valuable improvements. 
 
 2. The abolition of the Irish Church Esta- 
 blishment. 
 
 3. The perfect freedom of education in all its 
 branches. 
 
 The meeting was convened by the Lord 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 95 
 
 Mayor of Dublin, and was addressed by the 
 Arclibishops of Dublin and Cashel, and other 
 Eoman Catholic prelates. 
 
 EocMale, December 22, 1864. 
 
 My deae Loed Mayoe, — I have to thank 
 your committee for their friendly invitation to 
 your approaching meeting, although I shall not 
 be able to avail myself of it. It is difficult for 
 me to leave home at this season, and I have an 
 engagement to be in Birmingham about the 
 time when your meeting is to be held. 
 
 I am glad to see that an effort is to be made 
 to force on some political advance in your 
 country. The objects you aim at are good, 
 and I hope you may succeed. On the question 
 of landlord and tenant I think you should go 
 farther, and seek to do more. What you want 
 in Ireland is to break down the laws of. primo- 
 geniture and entail, so that in course of time, 
 by a gradual and just process, the Irish people 
 may become the possessors of the soil of Ire- 
 land. A legal security for tenants' improve- 
 ments will be of great value, but the true 
 remedy for your great grievances is to base the 
 laws which affect the land upon sound prin- 
 ciples of political economy. 
 
 With regard to the State Church, that is an 
 institution so evil and so odious, under the 
 circumstances of your country, that it makes 
 one almost hopeless of Irish freedom from it 
 that Irishmen have borne it so long. The 
 whole Liberal party in Great Britain will, 
 doubtless, join with you in demanding the 
 
96 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 removal of a wrong whicli has no equal in the 
 character of a national insult in any other 
 civilized and Christian country in the world. 
 
 If the popular party in Ireland would adopt 
 as its policy " Free Land " and '' Free Church," 
 and would unite with the popular party in 
 England and Scotland for the advance of 
 Liberal measures, and especially for the pro- 
 motion of an honest amendment of the repre- 
 sentation, I am confident that great and bene- 
 ficial changes might be made within a few 
 years. We have on our side numbers and 
 opinion, but we want a more distinct policy, 
 and a better organization; and these I hope, 
 to some extent, your meeting may supply. 
 
 I thank you for your very kind invitation to 
 the Mansion House, and am, my dear Lord 
 Mayor, 
 
 Yours very truly, 
 
 John Bkight. 
 
 The Right Hon. the Lord Mayor of Dublin. _ 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 At a private meeting of Radical electors held 
 in Carlisle early in May, 1865, it was decided 
 to solicit the opinion of Mr. Bright respecting 
 the position to be assumed by the party at the 
 ensuing election, which was then imminent. 
 In reply to the appeal addressed to him, Mr. 
 Bright wrote the following letter. The mem- 
 bers for Carlisle at this time were Mr. Wilfrid 
 (now Sir Wilfrid) Lawson, and Mr. Edmund 
 Potter. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 97 
 
 Rochdale, May 15, 1865. 
 
 Dear Sir, — My opinion is that the proper 
 course for the Liberal members is to withdraw 
 their support from any Government whicli will 
 not bring in and carry a good measure for the 
 extension of the suffrage. 
 
 Fortunately your members are well disposed 
 on the Reform question, and would do any- 
 thing that was thought wise in the matter. 
 
 Lord Palmerston is the real difficulty. He 
 is not a Liberal, and the failure of the Bill of 
 1860 was owing entirely to him. When he is 
 out of the way, no Government can exist on 
 our side of the House which will not deal with 
 the question of Reform. 
 
 I hope, at the coming election, the Radical 
 electors will endeavour to bring their members 
 up to the point of refusing to support a Go- 
 vernment not willing to fulfil the pledges of 
 1859 and 1860. When it is a question of 
 Reform or expulsion from office, the Whig 
 statesmen will' decide in favour of Reform. 
 This is the only effectual mode of dealing with 
 them, and I hope it will be adopted. 
 
 I hope the electors of your city will not think 
 it needful to make any change in your repre- 
 sentation. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE UNITED STATES AND 
 CANADA. 
 
 Read at the sitting of a commercial conven- 
 tion held at Detroit on the 12th of July, 1865. 
 
 H 
 
98 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 London, June 10, 1865. 
 Dear Sir, — I am mucli obliged to you for the 
 invitation to your approaching commercial con- 
 vention, to be held in the month of July. If I 
 were on your continent I should avail myself of 
 your friendly offer to be present at your deli- 
 berations, and if I could not add much to their 
 usefulness, I could learn much from them ; but 
 to me Detroit seems a long way from England, 
 and, unfortunately for me, I seem never to be 
 able to steal three months from my many 
 engagements here, to enable me to pay a long- 
 hoped-for visit to the United States, and now I 
 find it quite out of my power to avail myself of 
 your tempting invitation. The project of your 
 convention gives me great pleasure. I hope it 
 will lead to a renewal of commercial inter- 
 course with the British North- American pro- 
 vinces, for it will be a miserable thing if, 
 because they are in connection with the British 
 crown, and you acknowledge as your chief 
 magistrate your President at Washington, there 
 should not be a commercial intercourse between 
 them and you, as free as if you were one people, 
 and living under one government. I have 
 faith that when your people, so free and so 
 instructed, apply their minds to any question 
 of commerce, they will soon discern what is 
 true and adopt it, and in this faith I shall look 
 with confidence for the most beneficial results 
 from the discussions into which you are about 
 to enter. Whatever tends to promote harmony 
 and commercial dealings between the United 
 States and the Canadas will be favourably 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 99 
 
 regarded by every intelligent statesman in this 
 country. 
 
 Wishing you the happiest results from the 
 convention, and thanking you for your letter, 
 I am, with great respect, 
 
 Very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Joseph Aspinall, Esq. 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 LORD PALMERSTON AND REFORM. 
 
 Written in reply to an invitation to attend a 
 Reform meeting in Glasgow. 
 
 Pitnacree, Dunk eld, September 10, 1865. 
 Dear Sir, — Mr. Dalglish has forwarded your 
 letter to me. I thank you for your invitation, 
 although I do not feel myself able to accept it. 
 If I bome to Glasgow, I must go to other 
 places. I cannot bear the weight of an agi- 
 tation for Reform, and spend the winter in 
 attending great meetings, as I did in the 
 years 1858-9, and, therefore, I feel compelled 
 to shun engagements which I know I should 
 find too heavy for me. I have as much interest 
 in the question as I have had at any time, and 
 believe, and indeed I know, that it is advancing 
 with most certain steps. When the present 
 Prime Minister^ leaves oflBce, no ministry will 
 be possible of the Liberal party which will not 
 deal with the Reform question. I am not 
 
 ^ Lord Palmerston. 
 H 2 
 
100 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 anxious that it should be dealt with during his 
 official life, for he is the only man connected 
 with the Liberal party who is at once both 
 able and willing to betray it. One sentence 
 from his lips would have passed the Bill of 
 1860, and that sentence he refused to utter. 
 His colleagues preferred their places to their 
 honour as public men, and they consented to 
 the greatest political fraud of our times rather 
 than leave the treasury bench even for a 
 season. Happily the question does not depend 
 on the Prime Minister. He has never pro- 
 moted its growth, and he cannot prevent its 
 success. There is at work a steady and a 
 silent force which all who are not blind may 
 mark, and every day's delay will but add to the 
 certainty and fulness of our triumph. I hope 
 every Liberal constituency will so act through 
 its representatives as to make a sham Liberal 
 Government henceforth impossible. For what 
 can be more degrading to a Liberal member of 
 the House of Commons than to sit as a sup- 
 porter of an administration which repudiates 
 and has betrayed the first and greatest question 
 or cause upon which the whole policy of the 
 Liberal party is founded ? 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bkight. 
 
 Mr. George Newton, Glasgow. 
 
 ON THE GAME LAWS. 
 Read at a meeting of the Midland Farmers' 
 Club, held in Birmingham on Thursday, the 
 5th of October, 1865. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M,R loi 
 
 Eochdale, September 30, 1865. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I am glad to hear that you are 
 about to read a paper on the subject of the 
 Game Laws. I do not think much good would 
 be done by holding a meeting in Birmingham. 
 The towns are known to be against the Game 
 Laws, but so long as the county constituencies 
 send game preservers to Parliament, the members 
 for the towns can do nothing for the farmers. 
 
 It is about twenty years since I gave much 
 time and labour with a view to relieve the 
 farmers from the evil of the Game Laws ; and 
 I spent at least 300L in bringing before them 
 and the public some of the facts of this great 
 grievance. Up to this time nothing has beeuT 
 done in the way of relief, but, on the contrary, 
 the laws which favour the preservation of 
 game have been made more strict. I fear the 
 evil has become, not less, but greater, and I see 
 only one way in which any real improvement 
 can be made. It can only be done by having 
 in Parliament a larger number of representa- 
 tives of the people, and fewer representatives 
 of a class and of the prejudices and usurpations,, 
 of a class. How can this be brought about and 
 secured ? By the admission of another million 
 of the people to the elective franchise, so that 
 the House of Commons may become truly re- 
 presentative of the true interests and wishes of 
 the nation. 
 
 But there is one thing which the farmers 
 may do for themselves whenever an election for 
 a county takes place. At present iliey are not 
 asked who shall pretend to represent them, but 
 
I02 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 the lords and squires of the county name the 
 candidate, and, as a rule, the tenant farmers 
 vote for him, and he enters the House to do 
 the work of the lords and squires who selected 
 him. A main part of that work is to keep 
 guard over the laws which favour the preser- 
 vation of game. I know how many reasons 
 there are why a tenant should be disposed to 
 support the nominee of his landlord. He feels 
 in many ways his landlord or his landlord's 
 agents can annoy and injure him, and he sub- 
 mits to a power which he has not learned to 
 resist. But the time is coming when tenants 
 will dare to believe and act for themselves in 
 the performance of their political duties. They 
 can combine with great ease, and, when com- 
 bined, their •power is irresistible. I hope the 
 day may soon come when they will take the 
 elections of members for the counties in some 
 degree into their own hands ; and when this is 
 done, their political and social deliverance will be 
 secured. 
 
 You will see at once how easy it is for you to 
 combine. Every farmer has a horse and gig, 
 or dog-cart, or conveyance of some kind, so that 
 he can go to the poll without any cost to himself. 
 Farmers meet almost every week at their market 
 town, and they can know the feelings of their 
 class without difficulty. In every county they 
 should select a "farmers' candidate." If a 
 good tenant farmer can be selected, bring him 
 forward ; if not, then some other respectable 
 and intelligent man. If you can find a land- 
 lord who is willing to be just to the tenant 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 103 
 
 farmers, both in his private conduct and in re- 
 spect of legislation which affects them, take him 
 as your candidate, and give him a zealous sup- 
 port. You can contest a county almost at no 
 expense. A subscription of one pound from 
 each tenant will raise a sum large enough to pay 
 for all the printing you require ; and you can 
 take yourselves and your neighbours to the poll 
 at a trifling expense. The farmers' candidate 
 will be the popular candidate. The Liberals in 
 the towns will give him their support, and you 
 will carry him into Parliament to do the work 
 of the farmers and of the people, instead of 
 that of the lords and of the squires. 
 
 Some will say I am advising you to work a 
 revolution ; and so I am. It will be a revolu- 
 tion that will transfer the county representation 
 from a dozen rich men or families to the real 
 people of the counties. It will send men to 
 Parliament who will care more for the rights 
 and interests of the population than for the 
 semi-barbarous, sports of a class. When the 
 tenant farmers see their power, and arouse 
 themselves to exert it, the days of the Game 
 Laws are ended, and there will not be wanting 
 just and good men among the landlords them- 
 selves who will give them a hearty co-operation 
 in the good work. 
 
 As to changes in the Game Laws, I see no 
 great good in them. What you want is the 
 repeal of all laws which are made with the 
 object of favouring the preservation of game. 
 The fundamental principle of the tenant farmers 
 should be this : That they shall have absolute 
 
I04 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 and undisputed ownership of, and control over, 
 all animals which live upon the produce of the 
 land. They occupy land, and pay rent for it; 
 they risk all they have — their money, their 
 time, their labour, their hopes, their present 
 and their future — in the cultivation of their 
 farms ; the horses, cows, sheep, and swine are 
 theirs ; and the hares and rabbits, and game of 
 every kind living upon their farms, should also 
 be theirs. Till this is the settled law, and also 
 the practice of the country, the tenant farmers 
 will never hold the position to which they have a 
 just claim, and the evils of game laws and game 
 preservation will never be wholly removed. 
 
 At present it is impossible for your friends 
 in Parliament to do anything for you. You 
 can do much — I think you can do everything 
 for yourselves. Let it be a rule that no tenant 
 farmer will support a candidate who is not in 
 favour of full justice to tenant farmers, and the 
 whole character of county representatives will 
 be changed. 
 
 I would advise your committee to correspond 
 with farmers in every county in the kingdom, 
 and to exhort them everywhere seriously to 
 consider this great question, and to prepare to 
 act when another general election shall take 
 place. Your deHverance from the insulting 
 grievance of which you complain rests mainly 
 with yourselves. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. A. Robotham, The Oak Farm, 
 Drayton Basset, near Taniworth. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 105 
 
 ON IRISH AFFAIRS. 
 
 The following letter, written during the out- 
 break of Fenianism in Ireland, was read at a 
 meeting of the National Association in Dublin, 
 on Tuesday, the 6th of March, 1866. The 
 speech to which it alludes was delivered by Mr. 
 Bright on the 18th of February, 1866, in the 
 House of Commons on the occasion of an in- 
 troduction of a Bill by Sir G. Grey, on behalf 
 of Earl Russell's Government, for the suspen- 
 sions of the Habeas Corpus Act in Ireland. 
 Mr. Bright did not oppose the Bill, believing, 
 he said, that the course which was about to 
 be pursued, was the most merciful course for 
 Ireland under the circumstances ; but he made 
 a powerful appeal for the removal of some of 
 the evils under which the Irish people groaned, 
 and denounced the way in which Ireland had 
 been governed by this country for the previous 
 100 years. 
 
 London, March 3, 1866. 
 
 My dear Sir, — I have received the copy of 
 the resolution of thanks voted to me by the 
 Committee of the National Association of Ire- 
 land. I value it very much, and ask that you 
 will convey to the committee my gratitude for 
 the approval they have expressed of my recent 
 speech on the affairs and conditions of Ireland. 
 I think there is a better prospect for your un- 
 fortunate country, and I shall gladly do all in 
 my power to assist her own representatives and 
 the Government in such legislation as may be 
 required for her good. From the present ad- 
 
io6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ministration ^ I am sure you will receive sym- 
 pathy, and I cannot but hope that at an early 
 period there will be a resolute attempt to con- 
 quer the malady which, from time to time, 
 brings so much suffering to Ireland and so 
 much discredit to England. I believe it is in 
 the power of Parliament to remove all just 
 causes of discontent with you, and I shall 
 heartily co-operate in every effort tending to 
 that result. 
 
 Believe me, always sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Peter Paul M'Swine}^, Esq. 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 THE REFORM BILL OF 1866. 
 
 Read at a town's meeting held at Birming- 
 ham on the 26th of March, 1866, to consider 
 the Reform Bill introduced in the House of 
 Commons by Mr. Gladstone on behalf of Earl 
 Russell's Government on the 13th of March. 
 The last sentence but one in this letter furnishes 
 a proof that Mr. Bright at this time sanctioned 
 the separation of franchise and redistribution. 
 
 EocMale, March 25, 1866. 
 
 My dear Mr. Lloyd, — I feel sorry that I 
 cannot be at your meeting to-morrow night, to 
 witness and to help the expression of the sen- 
 timents of Birmingham upon the question which 
 is now exciting so much interest throughout 
 
 ^ Earl Russell's. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 107 
 
 the country. I cannot write as I could speak, 
 but I must write a few lines to you. 
 
 The Franchise Bill now before Parliament is 
 a perfectly honest Bill. It will, if it becomes 
 law, give votes extensively to the middle classes, 
 both in counties and boroughs, and it will over- 
 throw the principle of working-class exclusion 
 which was established by the Reform Bill of 
 1832. It will admit to the franchise so many 
 of the working men in all important and popu- 
 lous boroughs, that they, as a class, will no 
 longer feel themselves intentionally excluded 
 and insulted by the law. 
 
 In the counties it will enfranchise 200,000 
 men ; and it may be expected in some counties 
 to make the representation less that of the class 
 of landlords and more that of the great body of 
 the occupiers of houses and land within the 
 county. 
 
 It will enfranchise, in London and in all the 
 ■great cities, a considerable number of young 
 men and of artisans who live in lodgings or in 
 parts of houses, and it will thus extend the 
 franchise to many not included in the suffrage 
 granted by the Reform Act. 
 
 I say the Bill is an honest Bill ; and if it is 
 the least the Government could offer, it may be 
 that it is the greatest which the Government 
 could carry through Parliament. -^ 
 
 Parliament is never hearty for Reform, or for ) 
 any good measure. It hated the Reform Bill ' 
 of 1831-2. It hated the Bill which repealed 
 the Corn Law in 1846. It does not like the 
 Franchise Bill now upon its table. It is to a 
 
io8 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 large extent the offspring of landlord power in 
 the counties, and of tumult and corruption in 
 the boroughs ; and it would be strange if such 
 a Parliament were in favour of freedom and of 
 an honest representation of the people. J But, 
 notwithstanding such a Parliament, this Bill 
 will pass, if Birmingham and other towns will 
 do their duty. 
 
 There is opposed to it the Tory party, of 
 whose blindness and folly we have abundant 
 proofs in all history. We have no reason now 
 to expect for it a wiser course, and we have a 
 small section * of men who do not accept the 
 name of Tory, but zealously do its work. These 
 combined to form a conspiracy on which all the 
 hopes of Mr. Disraeli and the Opposition are 
 based. I think a more dirty conspiracy has 
 not been seen in the House of Commons for 
 many generations. It is directed against this 
 Bill, and not less against Lord Russell, by 
 whom the Liberal and popular policy of the 
 Government has been determined. 
 
 What should be done, and what must be done 
 under these circumstances ? You know what 
 your fathers did thirty-four years ago, and you 
 know the result. The men who in every speech 
 they utter insult working men, describing them 
 as a multitude given up to ignorance and vice, 
 will be the first to yield when the popular will 
 is loudly and resolutely expressed. If Parlia- 
 ment Street, from Charing Cross to the vene- 
 rable abbey, were filled with men seeking a 
 reform bill, as it was two years ago with men 
 come to do honour to an illustrious Italian, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 109 
 
 these slanderers of their country would learn 
 to be civil, if they did not learn to love freedom. 
 
 This Bill appeals to the middle and working^ 
 classes alike. It is a measure of enfranchise- 
 ment to both of them, and they should heartily 
 unite in an effort to make it a law. That which 
 the Tories and '' dirty conspiracy " oppose can- 
 not but deserve the support of every Liberal 
 man in the kingdom. If the population of the 
 Birmingham district would set apart a day, not 
 for " humiliation," but for a firm assertion of 
 their rights in great meetings or in one vast 
 gathering, they might sustain their Franchise 
 Bill, and beat down, as by one blow, the power 
 that threatens to bolt the door of Parliament 
 against the people. 
 
 I hope we shall see in all the towns of Great 
 Britain, duriYig the coming fortnight, a great 
 support of the Government and the Bill. If the 
 vote of want of confidence is carried against the 
 Government, there will be a change of ministers 
 or a dissolution of Parliament. If the towns 
 do their duty, the Government will be safe, 
 because the Bill will be safe, and the suffrage 
 once more established on a more rational basis. 
 The country can then turn its attention to the 
 arrangement and distribution of seats, which 
 is just as needful as a wider suffrage to give 
 us a fair representation of the nation. 
 
 Great meetings and great petitions will not 
 only be useful but effectual. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Thomas Lloyd, Esq. 
 
no THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 THE REFORM BILL OF 1866. 
 
 An open-air meeting, convened by the Reform 
 League, was lield on Monday afternoon, the 
 21st of May, 1866, on Primrose Hill, London. 
 Mr. E. Beales was called to the chair, and read 
 the following letter from Mr. Bright. The 
 Distribution of Seats Bill mentioned in it was 
 a Bill introduced by Mr. Gladstone after the 
 second reading of the Franchise Bill. It pro- 
 posed, by the partial disfranchisement of some 
 boroughs and the grouping of others, to dis- 
 tribute forty-nine seats amongst the counties 
 and larger boroughs. 
 
 KocMale, May 19, 1866. 
 
 Dear Sie, — I thank you for your invitation 
 to the meeting to be held on Monday, but I am 
 not able to be present at it. I hope all your 
 friends will understand the exact position of 
 the Reform question. The main portion of the 
 objections to the Franchise Bill on the second 
 reading were mere pretences; there was no 
 truth in them. The only real objection was 
 against the admission of any portion of the 
 working men to the suffrage. The same game 
 will be played hereafter. There will be resolu- 
 tions saying one thing and meaning another. 
 Everything will be criticized ; but the thing 
 really hated and feared will be the extension of 
 the franchise to the working men. The 
 Government Distribution of Seats Bill, I fear, 
 is not good enough to excite the hostility of 
 the Conservatives or those from the Liberal 
 ranks who have joined them, as it has little in 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 1 1 1 
 
 it to excite enthusiasm or favour among the 
 people. It will be opposed chiefly because it 
 is henceforth a part of the Bill which offers the 
 franchise to working men, and because a rejec- 
 tion of any considerable or important part of 
 the Bill will be the rejection of the whole. The] 
 Tory party, and those from the Liberal ranks 
 who join it, are animated by an unchangeable 
 hostility to any Bill which gives the franchise 
 to the working men. They object to any 
 transfer of power from those who now possess 
 it, and they object to share their power with 
 any increased number of their countrymen 
 who form the working class. They regard the 
 workmen here as the southern planter regards 
 the negroes who were so lately his slaves. 
 They can no longer be bought or sold ; so far 
 they are free men. They may work and pay 
 taxes ; but they must not vote. They must 
 obey the laws, but must have no share in 
 selecting the men who are to make them. The 
 future position of the millions of working men 
 in the United Kingdom is now determined, if 
 the opposition of the Tory party is to prevail — 
 it is precisely that fixed by the southern, 
 planter for the negro. Millions of workmen 
 will bear this in mind ; they will now know 
 the point or the gulf which separates one 
 party from the other in the House of Com- 
 mons. / 
 There will be great efforts made to induce 
 the Government to abandon the line of 14/. for 
 the county, and 11. for the borough franchise. 
 If the Government yields, it will probably de- 
 
TI2 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 stroy itself, and it will leave tlie question open 
 for the next Parliament — for no man can 
 suppose the suffrage question settled for the 
 term of a single Parliament, on the basis of a 
 departure from the figures of the present Bill. 
 Lord Derby's Bill of 1859 proposed a lOZ. 
 franchise for counties, and Lord Palmerston's 
 Bill of 1860 offered the same county franchise, 
 and a 6L franchise for boroughs. If anything 
 less or worse than a 14^. and 11, franchise be 
 now carried, there will not be a single reformer 
 in the kingdom who will not be at liberty, when 
 the Bill is passed, to petition or to move the 
 House for a further extension of the suffrage. 
 I hope you may have a good meeting, but I 
 shall regard it only as a preliminary to the 
 meetings you will hold, if the moderate measure 
 now before Parliament should be mutilated or 
 rejected. Working men everywhere should 
 feel that the real position and future of their 
 class are now in suspense, and that they depend 
 mainly on themselves. 
 
 I am, sir, &c., 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 THE HYDE PARK DEMONSTRATION IN 1866. 
 
 The following letter has reference to the 
 celebrated Reform meeting, when the railings of 
 Hyde Park were pulled down. The Reform 
 League had made arrangements to hold a meet- 
 ing in Hyde Park on Monday, the 24th of July, 
 1866, but the Government (that of Lord Derby) 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 1 13 
 
 refused to allow the meeting to be held there. 
 At five o'clock on Monday afternoon the park 
 entrances were all closed, 1500 policemen were 
 placed inside, and the Foot and Life Guards 
 were held in readiness. About seven o'clock 
 the Reform League processions arrived at the 
 gates and were refused admission, whereupon, 
 after protest being made, the League went to 
 Trafalgar Square and held a great meeting 
 there. A large crowd, however, remained at 
 the gates, and after attempting, without success, 
 to effect an entrance there, they attacked the 
 railings and pulled them down for several 
 yards. The police then charged the crowd, 
 and a fight ensued, in which several policemen 
 were wounded and some inspectors unhorsed. 
 The people poured into the park by thousands, 
 and although the police charged again and 
 again they were unable to drive them out. 
 The police would have been utterly routed, if 
 it had not been for the intervention of the 
 military. The Foot Guards with loaded guns 
 and fixed bayonets were drawn up near the 
 Marble Arch, and a Horse Guards' troop 
 patrolled the avenues. Eventually a meeting 
 was held, and resolutions condemning the 
 Government were passed. 
 
 Kochdale, July 19, 1866. 
 Dear Sir, — I thank your council for the 
 invitation to the meeting intended to be held 
 in Hyde Park on Monday next. I cannot 
 leave home for some days to come, and there- 
 fore cannot be in London on the 23rd instant. 
 
114 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 I see that the chief of the metropolitan pohce 
 force has announced his intention to prevent the 
 holding of the meeting. It appears from this 
 that the people may meet in the parks for 
 every purpose but that which ought to be most 
 important and most dear to them. To meet in 
 the streets is inconvenient, and to meet in the 
 parks is unlawful — this is the theory of the 
 police authorities of the metropolis. You have 
 asserted your right to meet on Primrose Hill 
 and in Trafalgar Square. I hope after Monday 
 next no one will doubt your right to meet in 
 ^ark^If a public meeting in- a public 
 park is denied you, and if millions of intelligent 
 and honest men are denied the franchise, on 
 what foundation does our liberty rest ? — or is 
 there in the country any liberty but the tolera- 
 tion of the ruling class ? This is a serious 
 question, but it is necessary to ask it, and 
 some answer must be given to it. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. George Howell, 
 
 Secretary to the Reform League, 
 
 8, Adelphi Terrace, Strand. 
 
 ON RECEIVING AN INVITATION TO A 
 BANQUET IN DUBLIN. 
 
 Written in reply to the following invitation, 
 signed by over twenty Irish Members of Par- 
 liament, which was sent to Mr. Bright in 
 August, 1866 : — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 115 
 
 Sir, — We, the undersigned, admiring your 
 public character and grateful for your eloquent 
 advocacy of the rights of our country, re- 
 spectfully request your acceptance of a public 
 banquet at Dublin on as early a day as your 
 convenience will permit. 
 
 Eochdale, September 1, 1866. 
 
 My DEAE Mr. Dillon, — I am afraid you will 
 think me long in answering your letter of the 
 21st ult., and in replying to the invitation to 
 the proposed banquet, which has duly reached, 
 me. The invitation is a very remarkable one, 
 and I cannot doubt it represents an important 
 amount of public opinion in Ireland. To 
 myself it is a testimony of approval and kind, 
 feeling which I estimate most highly, although 
 it involves me in no small difficulty, for I have 
 been hoping for a quiet autumn, with an 
 absence of public meetings and of public labour. 
 I am not confident that my coming to Ireland 
 will be of any service, but as so many among 
 you are of opinion that something may be done 
 to make a more perfect union between the 
 Liberals of Ireland and. the Liberal party here, 
 with a view to wiser legislation for your 
 country and. for ours, I have not felt myself at 
 liberty to refuse the invitation which has been 
 sent to me. I accept it with much gratitude 
 to those from whom it comes, and with a hope 
 that in doing so I may not be stepping beyond 
 the bounds of what seems to be my duty. 
 Some time during the month of October will, I 
 hope, be convenient to all concerned, but I 
 must ask you to leave the precise day to be 
 
 I 2 
 
ii6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 fixed two or three weeks hence. About the 
 middle of the month will probably be the best 
 time for me, if there be no objection to it on 
 the part of my friends in Dublin. 
 
 With many thanks to you and to those on 
 whose behalf you have written to me, 
 
 I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Jolin B. DiUon, M.P., Dublin. 
 
 ON AN ANTICIPATED VISIT TO 
 IRELAND. 
 
 In reply to a communication from Mr. John 
 M'Corry on behalf of the working classes of 
 Dublin, requesting that Mr. Bright would 
 afford them an opportunity, when in that city, 
 of expressing their gratitude to him for his 
 warm advocacy of the cause of Ireland. Being 
 in Dubhn in October and November, Mr. Bright, 
 after attending the banquet given to him by 
 Irish Liberals on the 30th of October, addressed 
 a meeting of working men in the theatre of the 
 Mechanics' Institute on the 2nd of November, 
 and was enthusiastically received. 
 
 Rochdale, September 27, 1866. 
 Deae SiE, — I have to thank you for your 
 kind letter. My stay in Dublin will be short, 
 and I cannot now promise to attend any public 
 meeting ; but if your friends will allow the 
 matter to stand over till nearer the time, 
 perhaps some arrangement may be made which 
 may not be inconvenient to them. I am much 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 117 
 
 obliged to Mr. James Haughton for his kind 
 offer. I think I was at his house when in 
 Dublin more than twenty years ago. May I 
 request you to convey my thanks to those on 
 whose behalf you have written to me, for their 
 friendly sentiments towards me ? 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON MR. GARTH'S LIBELS. 
 
 The following correspondence between Mr. 
 Bright and Mr. Richard Garth, elected member 
 for Guildford in December, 1866, gives an 
 illustration of the kind of weapons with which 
 Mr. Bright has at times been attacked. 
 
 Eochdale, December 24, 1866. 
 
 Sir, — Through the courtesy of an elector of 
 Guildford, I have received a handbill printed by 
 Mr. Stent, printer, stationer, &c., Guildford, 
 purporting to contain a report of a speech 
 delivered by you to an " enthusiastic meeting 
 of Mr. Garth's supporters, held at the ' White 
 Hart Hotel,' Friday evening, the 14th of De- 
 cember, 1866." I wish to call your attention to 
 some passages in this speech. I pass by much 
 which is open to criticism, and confine myself 
 to certain exact statements to which you appear 
 to have committed yourself. 
 
 1. You ask, " What has Mr. Bright done for 
 his own people? Has he ever stood for his 
 own place ? Dare he ever stand for it ? Not 
 he ! He has been hooted away from his own 
 premises — his own people distrust him." 
 
n8 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 2. You ask, '' What did he do in the cotton 
 famine, when thousands of men were out of 
 employment, when people down here, who had 
 no direct interest in the matter, subscribed so 
 liberally ? Why, he did not subscribe a half- 
 penny." 
 
 3. You say, "I will tell you what he did. 
 He wanted to give them a loan which was to 
 be repaid in so many years, so that during 
 those years he would have these people as his 
 serfs at his beck and call, to do what he pleased 
 with, and to prevent their rising when he chose 
 to put wages at whatever rate he liked." 
 
 You state that I have not answered charges 
 of a similar kind made against me, and you 
 therefore assume that they are true. I cannot 
 stoop to reply to the folly and the slander of 
 every poor Tory partisan who assails me, and 
 I should not have noticed you but for the fact 
 that you are a member of the House of 
 Commons. I am quite sure you will not ven- 
 ture to say on the floor of Parliament, where I 
 could meet you, what you have had the courage 
 to say at the " White Hart," in Guildford ; and 
 therefore I address this letter to you, rather 
 than wait till the opening of Parliament. 
 
 With regard to the paragraph which I have 
 marked No. 1, I beg to tell you that the only 
 part of it which is not false is that which 
 assumes or asserts that I have not stood as a 
 candidate for the borough of Rochdale. I have 
 not been a candidate for this borough, though 
 on several occasions I have been asked to stand 
 by the most eminent men of the Liberal party, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 119 
 
 ^hich has a large majority in the borough. I be- 
 lieve there is not a respectable man in Rochdale, 
 of your own party, who will not admit that, if I 
 had wished it, and had consented to leave the 
 great constituency which has for nine years 
 past honoured me with its confidence, I might 
 at this moment have been the Parliamentary 
 representativ^e of this borough. 
 
 The rest of the paragraph marked No. 1 is 
 simply a falsehood in every part of it. Of the 
 assertion in paragraph No. 2 I may say the 
 same. It is a falsehood in every part of it. I 
 am not in the habit of boasting of what I give, 
 and I shall not now enter into particulars that 
 I may confute you. I may say that, after we 
 had subscribed as largely as any firm in the 
 town, my only complaint against the relief 
 committee in this district was that it did not 
 make further calls upon the mill-owners here 
 before it applied for assistance from the general 
 fund at the disposal of the committee in Man- 
 chester. I may say further that, according to 
 my means, I believe I did not fall short of what 
 was done by any other contributor to the fund, 
 whether in or out of this country. Possibly you 
 are not aware of the fact that the largest sum 
 given by any contributor to the fund is but a 
 trifle when compared with the losses suffered 
 by nearly all the firms in the cotton trade during 
 the disastrous years of the American war. In 
 paragraph No. 3 you make a strange assertion, 
 both as to fact and motive. I am obliged to 
 tell you that the whole paragraph is false from 
 beginning to end. You must be singularly 
 
120 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ignorant of the condition and temper of tlie 
 working men of this district, to imagine that 
 any employer can have them " as his serfs at his 
 beck and call, to do what he pleases with, and 
 to prevent their rising when he chooses to put 
 wages at whatever rate he likes." 
 
 I have now called your attention to some 
 statements of your speech. I say that these 
 statements are false — wholly and absolutely 
 false. If you knew them to be false when you 
 made them, I need not write the word which 
 would properly describe you. If you made 
 t>hem, not knowing whether they were true or 
 false, I can only pity your disregard of all 
 honourable feeling and caution when dealing 
 with the character of your opponents. 
 
 I do not expect you will deny the accuracy 
 of the report of your speech, for I find that you 
 repeated the substance of the slanders in your 
 speech at the nomination for Guildford. I 
 do not expect that you will attempt to prove 
 the charges you have made, for I know that to 
 be impossible. Whether you will retract what 
 you have said, and express sorrow for having 
 said it, will depend on whether, being a Queen's 
 Counsel and a member of Parliament, you 
 possess the qualities which are never found 
 wanting in the character of a gentleman. 
 I am, respectfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 E. Garth, Esq., M.P., 3, Paper Buildings, Temple. 
 
 The foregoing letter produced the following 
 reply from Mr. Garth : — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 121 
 
 Temple, January 3, 1867. 
 
 SiK, — I have already explained to you my 
 reasons for not replying earlier to your letter 
 of the 24th of last month. 
 
 I was anxious, in justice to you, as well as to 
 myself, to put you in possession, as far as I could, 
 of the sources of information upon which the 
 statements I made at Guildford, and of which 
 you complain, were founded. I have no personal 
 knowledge either of yourself or of Rochdale, 
 and my impressions have been derived partly 
 from your own speeches, and partly from cor- 
 respondence and other statements which have 
 appeared from time to time in the public 
 prints. 
 
 I have not yet been able to lay my hand upon 
 some of these, but I would call your attention 
 to two speeches, which I had recently read, and 
 which, no doubt, were fresh in my memory at 
 the time when I addressed my friends at Guild- 
 ford. 
 
 The first of .these is a speech of Mr. Pope 
 Hennessy, addressed to the electors of the 
 county of Wexford, and reported in the Times 
 of the 6th of November last, from which the 
 following is an extract : — 
 
 " He is a great manufacturer, and he employs 
 what he calls a good many hands ; . . he em- 
 ploys a large number of human beings-^-men, 
 women, and children. Now, no man stands up 
 so stoutly for his own strong class as against 
 the weak instruments they employ as Mr. Bright; 
 he was a leader in the defence of the cruel old 
 system of slavery, of disease, of ignorance, of 
 
122 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 shortened, -anliappy lives wliicli the Factory 
 Acts have successfully attacked. Hardly two 
 years have passed since, at a meeting of the 
 magnates of Manchester, he boasted of his 
 former opposition to the Factory Acts, and said 
 he should be prepared to do the same again. 
 He kept his word ; for when the Lace Factories 
 Bill was before the House, and the Bleach 
 Works Bill, and a Bill to give some protection 
 to the poor girls who work in the Bradford ware- 
 houses, he was not only present, but violent in 
 his opposition to those salutary and benevolent 
 Acts. He fought, and the other Radical manu- 
 facturers with him, for what he deemed to be a 
 sort of property of his — the right of doing what 
 he liked with his own workpeople. He carried 
 his class-feelings even below the surface of the 
 earth, and when the Mines Regulation Bill was 
 before Parliament, he and his class would not give 
 the smallest help to the miner to get better ven- 
 tilation or greater safety from accidents, simply 
 because better ventilation and greater safety 
 means additional expense to the mine-owner. . . . 
 In 1861 a deputation from the miners came to 
 London, and presented me with an address of 
 thanks for some little services I tried to render 
 them, and from those men I heard an unanimous 
 condemnation of Mr. Bright." 
 
 The other speech to which I allude (and of 
 which printed copies have, I believe, been widely 
 circulated) was delivered by Mr. Ferrand to the 
 Working Men's Conservative Association at 
 Bradford on the 20th of November last. In 
 this speech Mr. Ferrand says : — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 123 
 
 " I have watched Mr. Bright for years, and 
 although, as I have told you, he is possessed of 
 marvellous powers of eloquence, a greater 
 political coward never entered the House of 
 Commons. ... I never heard him make a 
 speech which inculcated peace and goodwill 
 amongst men ; but, on the contrary, he has 
 always tried to set the different classes of the 
 community against each other, and thereby to 
 encourage bloodshed. For twenty-five years I 
 have worked with you working men of Brad- 
 ford in obtaining many great and conciliating 
 measures from Parliament, while he has opposed 
 them all. During that time, I never heard him 
 speak a word in favour of working men in the 
 House of Commons. You have been reminded 
 of what his conduct was in Lancashire during 
 the cotton famine. He took no part, either in 
 purse or person, to relieve the distress in his 
 native county ; but when I met, at Manchester, 
 a great assembly of delegates from the cotton 
 districts of Cheshire, Lancashire, Staffordshire, 
 and Yorkshire, they unanimously declared that 
 England had no more bitter enemy than Mr. 
 Bright, and that he was detested by all the 
 working men in Lancashire." 
 
 I can hardly suppose that your attention as 
 a public man has not been directed to these 
 passages ; and I am not aware that they have 
 ever been contradicted. I had seen other 
 public statements, and I had heard reports, 
 evincing your unpopularity amongst the work- 
 ing classes at Rochdale and in Lancashire 
 generally ; and I certainly did believe that you 
 
124 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 were unpopular there. You admit that you 
 never stood for Eochdale, although you have 
 been invited to do so by your friends, and it 
 was therefore surely not unreasonable that I 
 should form an opinion, which I believe I share 
 in common with many others, that if you had 
 stood for Rochdale you would not have been 
 successful. My views in this respect may have 
 been erroneous, but I consider that I had a 
 perfect right to entertain those views, and to 
 express them. 
 
 I also most firmly believed, from statements 
 and reports which I had seen and heard, that 
 you had been hooted from your own premises, 
 and were distrusted by your own workpeople ; 
 but, as you tell me that what I said in this 
 respect was wholly without foundation, I, of 
 course, take it for granted that I was misin- 
 formed, and I beg, not only to retract my state- 
 ment, but to express my sincere regret for 
 having made it. 
 
 With regard to the other paragraphs of which 
 you complain, I must observe that the report of 
 my speech is in some respects inaccurate. I 
 disclaim having ever said, or intended to say, 
 that "you had not subscribed a halfpenny" in 
 aid of the distress which prevailed during the 
 cotton famine. I sincerely hope and trust that 
 there was no manufacturer in any of the cotton 
 districts against whom such a charge could 
 justly be made. But I believe that I am quite 
 correct in supposing that at Rochdale, in the 
 month of January, 1862, you did propose, or 
 suggest, that, instead of raising further sub- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIG HI, M,P. 125 
 
 scriptions, the Poor-Law Guardians, or tlie 
 mill-owners, or both, should lend sums of money 
 to the distressed operatives, upon the under- 
 standing that such loans should be repaid out 
 of their earnings as soon as they should be 
 restored to work. 
 
 It was this proposition of yours to which I^ 
 alluded, and upon which I animadverted in my 
 speech at Guildford; and I certainly was of 
 opinion then, and I am so still, that the effect 
 of such a scheme as you proposed would have 
 been to entail a very heavy load of obligation 
 upon the working men, which would have 
 placed them, possibly for years, in great 
 measure under the control of their employers, 
 who might have exercised that control, either 
 in regulating the amount of wages, or in other 
 ways ; and I was, and am still further of 
 opinion, that to have carried out your propo- 
 sition at such a time, and under such circum- 
 stances, would have been by no means a liberal 
 or generous policy towards the distressed 
 operatives. 
 
 It is almost unnecessary to add, that you are 
 quite at liberty to make any use you please of 
 this letter. 
 
 I am, sir, your obedient servant, 
 
 IliCHARD Garth. 
 
 John Bright, Esq. 
 
 Mr. Bright replied to this letter as follows : — 
 
 Eochdale, January 4, 1867. 
 SiE, — Your letter of yesterday has just 
 
126 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 arrived, and I find it almost precisely what I 
 expected. After a week's searcli, you have not 
 found a single fact to establish the gross 
 charges brought against me in your speech at 
 Guildford. Instead of facts and proofs, yoa 
 fill three pages of your letter with extracts from 
 speeches of Mr. Ferrand and Mr. Hennessy, 
 which speeches have doubtless been spoken, but 
 which I have never read. 
 
 You made three charges of the most distinct 
 character : that I had been hooted from my 
 own premises; that I had not given ''a half- 
 penny " to the relief of the distress in these 
 districts ; and that I wished to support the 
 suffering workmen by loans, that I might have 
 them at my " beck and call," "to do what I 
 pleased with," and to prevent their rising when 
 I chose ''to put wages at whatever rate I 
 liked." 
 
 Your authority for the first charge is evi- 
 dently such that you dare not produce it ; it is 
 not even equal to the authority of Mr. Ferrand 
 and Mr. Hennessy, and therefore you retract it. 
 The second charge you escape from by denying 
 the accuracy of the report, without saying 
 what you actually did say in place of what you 
 are reported to have said. With regard to the 
 third charge, you seek to avoid it by expressing 
 an opinion that if money were lent to families 
 in distress, it would be burdensome to repay it, 
 which nobody doubts ; but you express no 
 regret that you charged me with recommending 
 a system of loans in order that I might use them 
 as a means of oppressing the ivorhmen during the 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, J/. P. 127 
 
 'period that would he required for the repayment 
 of the loans. 
 
 My object in suggesting loans was to give 
 relief in such a manner, to a large number of 
 persons, as would not bring them into the list 
 of ordinary paupers, and would not wound their 
 honourable pride ; and if the distress had lasted 
 only for a few months, as was then hoped would 
 be the case, the plan would have been practic- 
 able, and might have been adopted with great 
 advantage. 
 
 On a review of your speech and your letter, 
 I come to this conclusion — that you wished to 
 get into Parliament, and were not particular as 
 to the path which might lead to it. You threw 
 dirt during your canvass, doubtless knowing 
 that, if needful, you could eat it afterwards. 
 There are many men who go '' through dirt to 
 dignities," and I suspect you have no objection 
 to be one of them. 
 
 I am, with whatever respect is due to you, 
 
 Yours, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Richard Garth, Esq., M.P., Temple, London. 
 
 [The Editor has omitted from the above letter an anecdote 
 which was related to Mr. Cohden by Mr. Byng, one of the 
 oldest members of the House of Commons, and which was 
 quoted by Mr. Bright. While regarding the introduction of 
 this anecdote as perfectly justifiable under the circumstances 
 under which it was written, the Editor has left it out, under 
 the impression that Mr. Bright would prefer that it should 
 not, after this lapse of time, be repeated. As regards the 
 opposition to the Factory Act, it may be here stated that 
 Mr. Bright has always been in favour of legislation to pro- 
 tect children from overwork. He has been opposed to any 
 restriction of the labour of adults, whether of men or women.] 
 
128 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 THE REFORM RESOLUTIONS OF 1867. 
 
 On Lord Dunkellin's amendment being carried 
 in Committee on the Reform Bill of 1866, Earl 
 Russell resigned office, and Lord Derby was 
 asked to form a ministry. As soon as the Con- 
 servatives were in office they reopened the 
 question of Reform. The course they proposed 
 to take was to pass a series of resolutions, and 
 Mr. Disraeli arranged to move them on the 25th 
 of February. They were as follows : — 
 
 " This House having, in the last session of 
 Parliament, assented to the second reading of 
 a Bill, entitled, ' A Bill to extend the Right of 
 Voting at Elections of Members of Parliament 
 in England and Wales,' is of opinion : — 
 
 " L That the number of electors for counties 
 and boroughs in England and Wales ought to 
 be increased. 
 
 "2. That such increase may best be effected 
 by both reducing the value of the qualifying 
 tenement in counties and boroughs, and by 
 adding other franchises not dependent on such 
 value. 
 
 "3. That while it is desirable that a more 
 direct representation should be given to the 
 labouring class, it is contrary to the constitution 
 of this realm to give to any one class or interest 
 a predominating power over the rest of the 
 community. 
 
 '' 4. That the occupation franchise in coun- 
 ties and boroughs shall be based upon the 
 principle of rating. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, ALP. 129 
 
 "5. That tile principle of plurality of votes, 
 if adopted by Parliament, would facilitate tlie 
 settlement of the borough franchise on an 
 extensive basis. 
 
 " 6. That it is expedient to revise the exist- 
 ing distribution of seats. 
 
 "7. That in such a revision it is not expe- 
 dient that any borough now represented in 
 Parliament should be wholly disfranchised. 
 
 " 8. That in revising the existing distribution 
 of seats, this House will acknowledge as its 
 main consideration the expediency of supply- 
 ing representation to places not at present 
 represented, and which may be considered 
 entitled to that privilege. 
 
 "9. That it is expedient that provision 
 should be made for the better prevention of 
 bribery and corruption at elections. 
 
 *' 10. That it is expedient that the system of 
 registration of voters in counties should be 
 assimilated, as far as possible, to that which 
 prevails i^ boroughs. 
 
 "11. That it shall be open to every Parlia- 
 mentary elector, if he thinks fit, to record his 
 vote by means of a polling paper duly signed 
 and authenticated. 
 
 *' 12. That provision be made for diminishing 
 the distance which voters have to travel for the 
 purpose of recording their votes, so that no 
 expenditure for such purpose shall hereafter be 
 legal. 
 
 ''13. That a humble address be presented to 
 her Majesty, praying her Majesty to issue a 
 Royal Commission to form and submit to the 
 
I30 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 consideration of Parliament a sclieme for new 
 and enlarged boundaries of tlie existing Par- 
 liamentary boroughs, where the population 
 extends beyond the limits now assigned to such 
 boroughs, and to fix, subject to the decision 
 of Parliament, the boundaries of such other 
 boroughs as Parliament may deem fit to be 
 represented in this House." 
 
 These resolutions were very distasteful to the 
 Eeform party in the country, and at public 
 meetings held to consider them they were gene- 
 rally condemned. Amongst others the Brad- 
 ford branch of the National Eeform Union 
 declared them to be unsatisfactory and delusive, 
 and a report of the meeting's proceedings 
 having been sent to Mr. Bright, he wrote the 
 following letter in reply : — 
 
 Eochdale, February 16, 1867. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I think your resolutions very 
 good. The course taken by the Government 
 is an insult to the House, and a gross offence 
 to the whole body of Reformers in the country. 
 I cannot say what the House will do till after 
 the meeting which is called for Thursday next. 
 
 The Administration is bitterly hostile to 
 Eeform. When in Opposition this was abun- 
 dantly proved, and it is confirmed by its course 
 since its accession to office. It has not the 
 honesty or the courage to pronounce boldly 
 against Eeform, but it seeks to murder the 
 cause and the question by a course contrary to 
 Parliamentary usage and odious in the sight of 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 131 
 
 all honest men. If tlie House joins in the guilt 
 of this odious proceeding, it will only add to the 
 distrust with which it is now regarded by vast 
 multitudes of the people in all parts of the 
 country. 
 
 You are right in holding meetings, and in 
 every town and village meetings should be held. 
 Already they have been held more generally, 
 and more numerously attended than at any 
 other time since 1832. Hitherto the effect 
 seems little, so far as we may judge from the 
 action of the Administration, and whether 
 further meetings will produce any greater effect, 
 I cannot undertake to say. But I will venture 
 to say this, that a Government unmindful of 
 the opinion expressed so clearly in the great 
 centres of our population is running the country 
 into great peril. If meetings have no effect — 
 if the open and almost universal expression of 
 opinion has no power on the Administration 
 and the Legislature, — then, inevitably, the 
 minds of the people will seek other channels 
 with a view to obtain and secure the rights 
 which are so contemptuously denied them. If 
 I am wrong in believing this, then history is a 
 lie from the beginning, and we have all been 
 mistaken in our estimate of the causes out 
 of which many of the great and deplorable 
 transactions it has recorded have sprung. 
 
 I understand that in Birmingham a great 
 demonstration of opinion is contemplated, and 
 I suppose other parts of the country will have 
 something to say to an Administration which 
 abdicates its function, and is ready to betray 
 
 K 2 
 
132 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 both Queen and people, that it may remain in 
 office for another session. 
 
 I am, with great respect, yours truly, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 The Secretary of the Bradford Branch 
 of the Reform Union. 
 
 THE REFORM RESOLUTIONS OF 1867. 
 
 Written to the Secretary of the Birmingham 
 branch of the Reform League. 
 
 Eochdale, February 18, 1867. 
 
 Dear Sie, — I thank you for your note and 
 the copy of the resolutions passed at the great 
 meeting held on Tuesday last. I believe that 
 all you say about the Government and the reso- 
 lutions offered to the House is quite true, and I 
 hope that no attempt at legislation will be founded 
 upon the resolutions. The Reform question 
 cannot be dealt with in a manner satisfactory 
 to the people by the enemies of Reform, and it 
 will be better for us to wait till we have a 
 Government honestly favourable to Reform be- 
 fore anything further is sought to be done in 
 the House of Commons. I hope all classes of 
 Reformers in the country will combine to bring 
 about such an expression of opinion as will in- 
 duce the Legislature to deal honestly and gene- 
 rously with the question of representation. In 
 Birmingham, I believe, the middle class is ready 
 to work heartily with the " working class," 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 133 
 
 and I hope a tliorougli union may take place 
 with you and in all parts of the kingdom. 
 
 Yours, &c., 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. Roger Bateson, 12, Ann Street, Birmingham. 
 
 THE REFORM BILL OF 1867. 
 
 Read at a public meeting held in Glasgow 
 on Thursday, the 21st of March, 1867, under 
 the auspices of the Scottish Reform League, at 
 which the Bill introduced by Mr. Disraeli was 
 unhesitatingly condemned. This measure at its 
 introduction was regarded by the Reform party 
 as a very unsatisfactory measure; but in its 
 passage through Committee, it underwent, by 
 the action of Liberals, a remarkable and bene- 
 ficial change. 
 
 Reform Club, March 19, 1867. 
 
 Deaii Sir, — I cannot come to your meeting, 
 for I cannot leave London just now. My own 
 opinion is that Reform should be in the hands 
 of its friends and not of its enemies. The pre- 
 sent Government is not willing to deal with the 
 question, and I think the interests of the country 
 require that the Bill and its authors should be 
 got rid of. I wish the question could have 
 been fairly met and settled, but it seems to me 
 impossible under the conduct of Lord Derby 
 and Mr. Disraeli. It may be necessary to hold 
 meetings, greater even than those of last year. 
 I have no fear that the Reformers of Scotland 
 will not do their part. 
 
 I am, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
134 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON THREE-CORNERED CONSTI- 
 TUENCIES. 
 
 Written to a leading member of tlie Liberal 
 party in Birmingham in reference to Lord 
 Cairns' Amendment in Committee of the Re- 
 form Bill of 1867 in the House of Lords, pro- 
 viding that in constituencies represented by 
 three members, every elector should have only 
 two votes. 
 
 Manchester, July 31, 1867. 
 
 My dear Sir, — You see the vote in the Lords. 
 It partially disfranchises Birmingham. Instead 
 of your having iliree voices, or two, in a great 
 division on a great principle, you are now to 
 have only one. 
 
 Your future Tory member will pair with me 
 or with Mr. Dixon, and there will be left only one 
 vote for your great community. Birmingham 
 is now reduced to the position and weight of 
 Arundel or Calne in a great Parliamentary 
 division, and this in the year of Reform and 
 extension of popular power. 
 
 You will see that certain of the Whig peers 
 have joined this childish or nefarious scheme. 
 It is not the less dangerous on that account. 
 I hope you will take some steps to counteract 
 this proposition. The great towns should send 
 deputations up to London to urge the Govern- 
 ment to maintain the integrity of the Bill. I 
 do not think Mr. Disraeli wishes to injure the 
 Bill. He spoke earnestly against this scheme 
 in the House, and I hope he wall adhere to his 
 own view on so grave a matter. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP. 135 
 
 You should not for a moment dream of con- 
 senting to the audacious proposal to destroy 
 the political weight and force of your borough. 
 I am, sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 THE BALLOT. 
 
 Written to Mr. Beales, the President of the 
 Reform League, in reply to the announcement 
 that the League would use its organization, 
 consisting of 430 branches, for the purposes of 
 registration, educating the people in the use of 
 the vote, and promoting the return to the next 
 Parliament of members pledged to advanced 
 Liberal principles. 
 
 August 18, 1867. 
 
 My dear Mr. Beales, — I am glad to see that 
 it is not intended to discontinue the organi- 
 zation and labours of the Reform League, 
 although so great a step has been gained in 
 the extension of the suffrage. On that branch 
 of the question of Reform I presume you will 
 not feel it necessary now to agitate further, so 
 far as the boroughs are concerned. But the 
 concession of a wide franchise is most incom- 
 plete as long as the security of the ballot is 
 denied. As a machinery for' conducting elec- 
 tions without disorder the arrangement of the 
 ballot is perfect, and, if on that ground only, 
 it should be adopted. But there is a higher 
 ground on which all Reformers should insist 
 
136 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 upon it. The more wide tlie suffrage, the more 
 there are of men in humble circumstances who 
 are admitted to the exercise of pohtical rights, 
 the more clearly is it necessary that the shelter 
 of the ballot should be granted. I am con- 
 fident it would lessen expenses at elections, 
 greatly diminish corruption, and destroy the 
 odious system of intimidation which now so 
 extensively prevails, and that it would make 
 the House of Commons a more complete repre- 
 sentation of the opinions and wishes of the 
 electoral body. I have a very strong conviction 
 on this subject, and I hope all our friends 
 throughout the country will accept the ballot 
 as the next great question for which, in con- 
 nection with Parliamentary Eeform, they ought 
 to contend. Without this safeguard there can 
 be no escape from corruption and oppression at 
 elections, and our political contests will still 
 remain what they now are, a discredit to us as 
 a free and intelHgent people. 
 
 If the Reform League and Reform Union 
 will make the ballot their next work, they must 
 soon succeed. I need not tell you that I shall 
 heartily join in their labours for this great end. 
 I hope the friends of the ballot, those who care 
 for freedom and morality in the working of 
 our representative system, will provide the 
 needful funds to enable you to move on with 
 an increasing force to a complete success. 
 Believe me, always sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Edmond Beales, Lincoln's Inn, London. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 137 
 
 ON REFORM. 
 
 REDISTRIBUTION AND THE BALLOT. 
 
 Read at a banquet held in connection with 
 the Working Men's Reform Association at the 
 Crystal Palace on the 30th of September, 1867, 
 to celebrate the passing of the Reform Bill of 
 
 1867. 
 
 September 29, 1867. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I shall be very sorry to dis- 
 appoint any of those who rejoice with us in the 
 wide extension of the suffrage, but I cannot 
 undertake to be present at the proposed great 
 meeting and dinner at the Crystal Palace, to 
 which you have kindly invited me. I have 
 given what should have been the leisure of 
 many autumns to the movement for Reform, 
 and now, when one maiu part of the work is 
 done, I do not feel disposed to give another 
 autumn to platform labours to celebrate the 
 victory we have won. I have already several 
 invitations to diuners and meetings, and I shall 
 have to send to each of them the answer I am 
 compelled to send to you. I have fixed for 
 myself a different kind of work for this Parlia- 
 mentary recess, and I hope almost entirely to 
 be able to escape from the labours of public 
 meetings for the present. 
 
 It is quite natural and most just that the 
 working men should rejoice at what has been 
 gained, but I hope they will not forget that 
 without a readjustment of members to popu- 
 lation, and without the security of the ballot, 
 
138 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 the House of Commons will still be, for tlie 
 most part, but a delegation from the ricli, and 
 not a real and free representation of the people. 
 This should be borne in mind when preparing 
 for the general election which must come at 
 the end of next year. The destruction of the 
 popular power of the great boroughs by the 
 vote at the end of the session will show how 
 little Parliament is now to be trusted on any 
 question of Reform on which it may think it 
 safe to go wrong. The Legislature has been 
 driven in one direction by forces too strong for 
 it, but its temper is not changed. 
 
 I am, with great respect, yours truly, 
 
 JoH>^ Bright. 
 
 To Mr. George Potter. 
 
 ON THE lEISH LAND QUESTION. 
 
 Written to Mr. Henry Dix Hutton, who had 
 recently published a pamphlet entitled " Prussia 
 and Ireland." 
 
 Eochdale, :N'oveinber 11, 1867. 
 
 My deae Sir, — I have read your ''Prussia 
 and Ireland " with much interest, and, as far as 
 you go, I agree with you, but I think more 
 requires to be done. Your plan is to help 
 tenants to buy farms where owners are willing 
 to sell, to lend them money on easy terms, and 
 to take good security for the transaction. 
 Owners are not very willing to sell, and the 
 process of restoration, of creating an Irish 
 proprietary, would be very slow. In my speech 
 in Dublin a year ago I suggested another plan. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 139 
 
 not unlike yours, but more certainly operative, 
 and with which yours might be combined. I 
 proposed a Parliamentary Commission, em- 
 powered to buy large estates, particularly of 
 English proprietors of Irish property, and to 
 re-sell them in existing farms to existing 
 tenants on terms something like those which 
 you propose. A sum of 5,000,000Z. thus at 
 the disposal of the Commission would secure 
 some large estates, and the process of creating 
 "farmers, owners of farms," would begin at 
 once and would go on rapidly. Your plan in 
 fifty years would do much good, mine would 
 do much in five years, and in twenty years or 
 less would change the aspect of things in 
 Ireland. 
 
 You want the change we are both in favour 
 of, that is, we want to make the Irish farmer 
 attached to the soil by the tie of ownership 
 rather than by that which now exists, the 
 necessity to have a holding in land that he may 
 live. We want, further, to beget a new and 
 national sentiment, to convince every Irishman 
 now on the land that we do not intend to drive 
 him across the Atlantic, but to remain a con- 
 tented dweller on his own soil. I think my 
 scheme would do this, would give hope and faith, 
 and inspire Mm with a belief in the future, 
 and stimulate him to effort and industry. 
 
 You will see the difference between your 
 scheme and mine — mine is to grapple at once 
 with the desperate malady which keeps your 
 country in a state of chronic discontent and 
 insurrection. Your plan may be more easily 
 
I40 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 secured, but our children will only see much 
 result from it — mine would, I think, restore 
 confidence and banish speedily some of the 
 despair and disloyalty which so extensively 
 prevail. In some of our colonies, in Canada 
 and in New Brunswick, I believe Government 
 has bought off landlords' rights with great 
 advantage to the people; why not try some- 
 thing in Ireland ? 
 
 Thanking you for your excellent pamphlet, 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Henry Dix Hutton, Esq., Dublin. 
 
 ON IRISH QUESTIONS. 
 
 THE CHUECH AND LAND. 
 
 On the 7th of October, 1880, a meeting of 
 105 of the leading landlords and agents of 
 Ireland was held in Dublin for the purpose of 
 considering the state of the country, which was 
 at that time violently disturbed by agrarian 
 agitations and outrages. After conferring 
 together for some time, the meeting sent a 
 deputation to the Lord-Lieutenant and Chief 
 Secretary, to inform them in detail of the state 
 of the country. The next day the following 
 letter from a member of the deputation was 
 sent to the Chief Secretary (Mr. Forster) and 
 was subsequently published in the Daily 
 Express ; — 
 
 "Friday, October 8.— Sir, — The deputation 
 who had the honour of an interview with 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 141 
 
 his Excellency the Lord- Lieutenant and your- 
 self yesterday did not require any assurance 
 of his Excellency's and your entire and hearty 
 disapproval of the programme of the Land 
 League, their method of agitation, and its 
 murderous accompaniments ; but at the moment 
 of your disapproval of any kind of sympathy, I 
 held in my hand a MS. bearing the signature 
 of one of the most prominent members of the 
 Cabinet, declaring his hearty approval of a 
 scheme embracing * the abandonment of our 
 territorial system,' and intimating in plain 
 terms that the method to be pursued to obtain 
 such a sweeping measure is that our rulers are 
 to be ' sufficiently ' intimidated by ' a United 
 Ireland ' demanding it, and menacing Great 
 Britain if it should be refused. What, then, 
 will avail your best conceived attempts to allay 
 the storms thus invited, when we are aware that 
 Mr. Parnell is acting in a parallel direction with 
 the sympathies, and his movement travelling, if 
 not in concert, yet at least in harmony with the 
 ultimate designs of at least one member of the 
 Cabinet ? The people in Ireland require, there- 
 fore, more than the mere assurance of your 
 personal intentions. They will not be satisfied 
 until they see the Cabinet resolved to take 
 energetic action. The document I refer to I 
 shall make public in such manner and time as 
 seem desirable, as the circumstances under 
 which it came into my possession leave me free 
 to utilize it for the public good." 
 
 The following is the document referred to in 
 the preceding letter. It is in harmony with 
 
142 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 Mr. Briglit's other observations on the Irish 
 land question, and to a calm observer does not 
 offer the dark and terrible suggestions which 
 the excited mind of an Irish landowner in 1880 
 gathered from it. 
 
 EocMale, January 27, 1868. 
 
 My dear Sir, — I have read the " proposals " 
 over with great interest and care. They are 
 wide, and embrace the whole Irish difficulty, 
 and, if adopted, would at once apply a remedy 
 to the two branches of the grand question. 
 For twenty years I have always said that the 
 only way to remedy the evils of Ireland is by 
 legislation on the Church and land. But we 
 are met still with this obstacle, even yet I fear 
 insurmountable, that the legislation must come 
 from and through a Parliament which is not 
 Irish, and in which every principle essential for 
 the regeneration of Ireland is repudiated. The 
 knowledge of this makes me hesitate as to the 
 wisdom of your '' proposals " in their present 
 shape. I fear the scheme is so broad, and so 
 good, and so complete, that Parliament would 
 stand aghast at it. To strike down an esta- 
 blished Church and to abandon the theory of our 
 territorial system by one Act of Parliament 
 would be too much for Parliament, and would 
 destroy any Government that suggested it. I 
 can conceive a condition of things in Ireland 
 under which such a great change might be 
 accomplished — if Ireland were united in de- 
 manding it, and were menacing Great Britain 
 if it should be refused ; but now I suspect our 
 rulers, though uncomfortable, are not sufficiently 
 alarmed to yield. The Tories cannot deal with 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 143 
 
 Ireland. Their concession on Eeform does not 
 lead me to think they can give in on Irish 
 affairs. The Whigs are almost as much afraid 
 as the Tories are of questions affecting the 
 Church and the land, and they seem to have 
 almost no courage. 
 
 Lord Russell is old, and cannot grapple with 
 a great question like this. Mr. Gladstone hesi- 
 tates, and hardly knows how far to go. The 
 material of his forces is not good, and I suspect 
 he has not studied the land question, and knows 
 little about it. The English people are in com- 
 plete ignorance of Irish wrongs, and know 
 little or nothing of the real condition of your 
 country. This is a sad picture; but it is not 
 coloured too darkly. There is no necessary 
 connection between the Church and the land. 
 To make a farmer proprietary would not involve 
 the Government in any permanent expense, and 
 it may be done without touching the Church 
 question; and this, again, may be dealt with 
 without meddling with the land. ISTow, the two 
 schemes together and in one is a grand idea. 
 Perhaps too grand for so slow a nation and 
 parliament as ours. Many persons may be 
 willing to get rid of the Church who are un- 
 willing to depart from present theories with 
 regard to the land, and some may go with you 
 on the land and hold back on the Church. Is 
 it supposed that for the whole scheme you can 
 secure a larger support than for either of the 
 two branches of it separately? This is the 
 question you must answer. For myself, I 
 should have no hesitation if I could persuade 
 myself that others in sufficient numbers would 
 
144 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 follow ; and, whether they follow or not, I am 
 ready to state my general approval of your 
 great plan, should it be brought before the 
 public. If all the Liberal Protestants and all 
 the Catholic population in Ireland will unite to 
 support you, some impression may be made on 
 English opinion and upon Parliament; but, 
 looking to all past efforts among you, I am not 
 NQY^ sanguine that you will succeed in bringing 
 a strong and united pressure to bear upon our 
 ruling class. I am expected to speak to-morrow 
 week at Birmingham, and I intend to speak on 
 Ireland. I am free from the trammels which 
 fetter Mr. Gladstone, and I can speak without 
 reserve and without fear. What I shall say 
 will not increase your difficulties, but will, I 
 trust, rather smooth your path with regard to 
 English opinion. The Liberal party is not in 
 a good position for undertaking any great 
 measure of statesmanship. Some Whigs dis- 
 trust Mr. Gladstone, and some, who call them- 
 selves Radicals, dishke him. He does not feel 
 himself very secure as leader of a powerful and 
 compact force. The Whig peers are generally 
 feeble and timid, and shrink from anythiog out 
 of the usual course. We want a strong man 
 with a strong brain and convictions for a work 
 of this kind, and I do not see him among our 
 public men. I hope all that is wise and good 
 in Ireland may support you, and that you may 
 soon affect the opinion and conduct of Par- 
 liament. 
 
 I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JO HA BRIGHT, MP. 145 
 
 ON THUEE-CORNERED CONSTI- 
 TUENCIES. 
 
 Read at a meeting of the Liberal electors of 
 Birmingham, held on the 3rd of August, 1868, 
 to impress upon the electors the duty of voting 
 as they were requested by the Liberal Asso- 
 ciation at the following election, in order to 
 secure the return of three Liberals. 
 
 Kochdale, August 1, 1868. 
 
 Dear Sir, — At the ward meeting the plan 
 for returning three Liberals should be tho- 
 roughly explained, and every man who votes 
 for two candidates, as recommended by the 
 Committee, should feel that he has done his 
 utmost to secure the return of all three. With- 
 out a good organization the return of three 
 Liberals is impossible. With it you may suc- 
 ceed, and thus baffle the most offensive scheme 
 ever devised for destroying the influence of the 
 largest constituencies. I hope the candidates 
 will be held to be on a perfect equality, and 
 that the utmost effort will be made to return 
 all three. Every man who votes for two of 
 them in the manner proposed will most help to 
 carry the three. 
 
 V I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE HOUSE OF LORDS. 
 
 Read at a meeting in Birmingham on the 
 14th of June, 1869. The peers were at that 
 
 L 
 
146 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 time tlireatening the Bill for tlie Disestablisli- 
 ment of the Irish Church, which had just passed 
 the House of Commons ; they, however, subse- 
 quently passed it. The expression, " a little 
 childish tinkering about life peerages," in the 
 letter, was an allusion to a Bill which was being 
 considered by the House of Lords, on the intro- 
 duction of Earl Russell, for the creation of life 
 peerages. 
 
 This letter, coming from a member of the 
 Government, gave great offence to some of the 
 peers, and it was the subject of question and 
 comment in the House of Lords. 
 
 London, June 9, 1869, 
 
 Dear Sir, — I must ask my friends to excuse 
 me if I am unable to accept their invitation for 
 their meeting on Monday next. 
 
 The Lords are not very wise, but there is 
 sometimes profit to the people even in their 
 unwisdom. If they should delay the passing of 
 the Irish Church Bill for three months, they 
 will stimulate discussion on important ques- 
 tions, which, but for their infatuation, might 
 have slumbered for many years. It is possible 
 that a good many people may ask what is the 
 special value of a Constitution which gives a 
 majority of 100 in one House for a given policy, 
 and a majority of 100 in another House against 
 it. It may be asked also why the Crown, 
 through, its Ministers in the House of 
 Commons, should be found in harmony with 
 the nation, whilst the Lords are generally in 
 direct opposition to it. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 147 
 
 Instead of doing a little childisli tinkering 
 about life peerages, it would be well if the peers 
 could bring themselves on a line with the 
 opinions and necessities of our day. In har- 
 mony with the nation they may go on for a 
 long time, but throwing themselves athwart its 
 course, they may meet with accidents not 
 pleasant for them to think of. 
 
 But there are not a few good and wise men 
 among the peers, and we will hope their 
 councils may prevail. 
 
 I am sure you will forgive me if I cannot 
 come to your meeting. 
 
 Believe me always, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. H. B. S. Thompson, 
 Secretary Birmingham Liberal Association. 
 
 ON BECOMING PEESIDENT OF THE 
 BOARD OF TRADE. 
 
 On the formation of a Liberal Government in 
 1868, Mr. Gladstone offered Mr. Bright a seat 
 in the Cabinet. It was expected in the country 
 that Mr. Bright would be appointed Secretary 
 of State for India, for which office he had 
 shown himself to be qualified by his intimate 
 acquaintance with Indian affairs ; this office was 
 indeed offered to him, but he declined it in 
 preference for the more modest post of Pre- 
 sident of the Board of Trade. The following 
 letter was written in reply to a note of 
 congratulation sent him by a gentleman at 
 Sheffield :— 
 
 L 2 
 
148 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 London, December 9, 1868. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I must send you a short note, to 
 thank you for your very kind letter. It is a 
 great pleasure to me to know that you and 
 your friends in Sheffield are satisfied with the 
 course I have taken in joining the new Adminis- 
 tration. I have done it with extreme reluctance, 
 but the pressure put upon me was more than I 
 could withstand. I hope I have done what it 
 seemed finally my duty to do. For your most 
 friendly expressions and wishes accept my 
 heartfelt thanks, and believe me always, 
 Very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON FREE TRADE AND TORY PAM- 
 PHLETEERS. 
 
 Written in acknowledgment of a Protectionist 
 pamphlet which had been sent to Mr. Bright. 
 
 Rochdale, September 8, 1869. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I thank you for the newspaper. 
 There are knaves in the world, and there are 
 simpletons, and the one class preys on the 
 other. 
 
 The Tory party is always driven to these 
 tricks; they cannot otherwise appeal to the 
 multitude. 
 
 If they complain that too many customs' 
 duties have been repealed, they will perhaps 
 kindly tell the working men what duties they 
 will put on again. Is it the duty on corn, or 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP. 149 
 
 cattle, or do they wisli a duty on imported 
 cotton ? 
 
 If a foreigner will not buy cheaply from us, 
 will it mend the matter if we refuse to buy 
 cheaply from him or from some other foreigner? 
 If wages have risen from twenty to fifty per 
 cent, since 1840, is this consistent with a wrong 
 policy as to our foreign trade ? The pamphlet 
 to which you refer bears the marks of having 
 been written in Bedlam ; it is a mere confusion 
 of figures, and is wholly without logic or 
 sense. 
 
 The good harvest will tend to restore health 
 to the general trade of the country, and when 
 we have a sufficient supply of cotton, Lanca- 
 shire will recover from its present distressed 
 condition. It is more cotton we want, and not 
 more taxes on imports. I suspect the people 
 of Lancasr e will not fail to understand this. 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Leonard Kaberry, jun., 
 
 46, Fenton Street, Eochdale. 
 
 ON HOME RULE. 
 
 Eochdale, January 20, 1872. 
 
 My dear O'Donoghue, — It is said that some 
 persons engaged in the canvass of the county 
 of Kerry have spoken of me as an advocate of 
 Home Rule for Ireland. I hope no one has 
 ventured to say anything so absurd and untrue. 
 If it has been said by any one of any authority 
 in the county, I shall be glad if you will con- 
 
I50 THE PUBLIC LETTERS . 
 
 tradict it. To have two Legislative Assemblies 
 in the United Kingdom would, in ray opinion, 
 be an intolerable mischief ; and I think no 
 sensible man can wish for two within the 
 limits of the present United Kingdom who does 
 not wish the United Kingdom to become two 
 or more nations, entirely separate from each 
 other.* 
 
 Excuse me for troubling you with this. It 
 is no duty of mine to interfere in your contest, 
 but I do not wish to be misrepresented. 
 I am, yours very truly, 
 
 John Buight. 
 
 The O'Donoghue of the Glens, M.P. 
 
 ON THE REPRESENTATION OF BIR- 
 MINGHAM. 
 
 Read at a meeting of electors in the Town 
 Hall, Birmingham, the 29th of January, 1872, 
 to hear the annual addresses of their repre- 
 sentatives. 
 
 Eochdale, January 27, 1872. 
 
 My dear Me. Weight, — Your annual meeting 
 is fixed for Monday next, and I regret very 
 much that I am unable to be present at it. I am 
 not sure that I ought not, two years ago, to 
 have given up the office of your representative, 
 when I found myself no longer capable of per- 
 forming its duties — but I have trusted to the 
 kindness of my friends, and have, I fear, 
 trespassed somewhat too much upon it. Some 
 months ago I thought I should have been able 
 to be in Birmingham before the opening of the 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 151 
 
 session, but I dare not yet attempt to take 
 part in, or to be present at, one of your great 
 Town Hall meetings. I expect, notwithstand- 
 ing, that I shall be able to attend the House of 
 Commons during some portion of the ensuing 
 session. 
 
 I do not enter into political discussion, 
 because I should require to write a pamphlet if 
 I were only to touch upon the many questions 
 now before the public which will soon come 
 before Parliament. I hope the session will be 
 fruitful in good measures, and that a deter- 
 mination to lessen the public expenditure may 
 be manifested by the Administration and the 
 House. I am very grateful to my friends for 
 their long patience with me, and to my 
 colleagues, Mr. Dixon and Mr. Muntz, that 
 they have not permitted any matter specially 
 affecting Birmingham to suffer from my 
 absence. 
 
 Believe me, always sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE IlSrOOMB-TAX. 
 
 Written in reply to an invitation sent him to 
 join a deputation from the Birmingham Anti- 
 Income-Tax Association to the Chancellor of 
 the Exchequer on the 6th of March, 1872. 
 
 RocMale, March 4, 1872. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I regret to say that I shall not 
 be able to be in town on Wednesday, and there- 
 
152 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 fore cannot take part in the proposed deputation 
 to the Chancellor of the Exchequer. 
 
 There is little difference of opinion as to the 
 odious and unfair character of the income-tax : 
 but it is not easy to see where the money is to 
 be obtained which now comes from that tax. I 
 see no chance of its abolition, except in a 
 lessened expenditure, and at present there 
 seems no probability of the creation of a politi- 
 cal party resolved to lessen the public expendi- 
 ture, and adopting that policy as the one great 
 article of its creed. I do not believe in govern- 
 ments that cannot govern without taking seventy 
 millions every year from the industry of the 
 nation, and I hope the time will come when 
 no such government will be permitted to 
 exist. 
 
 For myself I should be ready to vote for such 
 reduction of the expenditure as would enable 
 the Chancellor of the Exchequer to remove the 
 income-tax, or to abolish the taxes which add 
 so greatly to the price of tea, coffee, and sugar. 
 
 I am, truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 G. W. Plant, Esq., Birmingham. 
 
 ON EEPUBLICANISM. 
 
 Written to a gentleman who had been told 
 that the English Republicans would select Mr. 
 Bright as their first President, and who wrote 
 to ask the right hon. gentleman if he would 
 accept the post. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 153 
 
 Rochdale, April 7, 1872. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Your Republican friend must 
 not be a very desperate character if lie proposes 
 to make me his first President, though I doubt 
 if he can be a friend of mine. As to opinions 
 on the question of Monarchy or Hepublicanism, 
 I hope and believe it will be a long time before 
 we are asked to give our opinion ; our ancestors 
 decided the matter a long time since, and I 
 would suggest that you and I should leave any 
 further decision to our posterity. Now, from 
 your letter I conclude you are willing to do 
 this, and I can assure you I am not less 
 willing. 
 
 I am, truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON FREE TRADE. 
 
 THE FRENCH COMMERCIAL TREATY OF 1872. 
 
 "Written in reply to a letter from Mr. 
 Nathaniel Poole, of Coventry, who enclosed a 
 resolution passed at a public meeting at 
 Coventry, and who said he was directed to ask 
 whether there was any hope of the artisans of 
 Coventry obtaining fair play in the fierce race 
 of competition between France and England. 
 If her Majesty's Ministers, he said, knew or 
 considered ''the vast amount of misery and 
 wretchedness these continued one-sided and 
 anti-free-trade treaties inflicted upon seven 
 thousand industrious men and women in 
 Coventry," he thought they would hesitate 
 
154 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 before they brought so great an evil upon 
 them. 
 
 Llandudno, November 22, 1872. 
 
 Sir, — It is to be regretted that you and your 
 friends should distress yourselves about the 
 new treaty, and prefer, as I conclude you would 
 prefer, to have no treaty at all. If there were 
 no treaty, the French Government would not 
 reduce their import duties, some of them they 
 would probably raise, and the English Govern- 
 ment would not impose new or higher duties on 
 importations from France. The treaty, there- 
 fore, which jBixes the limit of the French tariff, 
 but which does not prevent its amendment in 
 the direction of lower duties, and which in no 
 degree affects the duties we impose on foreign 
 goods, can inflict no injury on Coventry or on 
 any other manufacturing town in the kingdom. 
 The treaty may not be a wise treaty on the 
 part of France, but it is impossible that it 
 should be injurious to England, for under its 
 provisions England does not bind herself to do 
 anything which she would not willingly and 
 wisely do if the treaty were not in existence. 
 If, under the treaty, tbe French tariff is in any 
 degree lower than it would be without the 
 treaty, then by so much are we tlie gainers 
 by it. 
 
 Our Government would have been delighted 
 to have signed a treaty under which the French 
 tariff would have been as liberal and as sensible 
 as our own, but it can only act for England, and 
 not for France. If I am not mistaken, you were 
 against the treaty of 1860, and on the same 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 155 
 
 grounds, doubtless, you are against tlie renewed 
 treaty of 1872. You think the special interests 
 of Coventry should have been cared for at the 
 expense of the general population of the king- 
 dom. But Lord Granville is not the Minister 
 for Coventry only, but for the United King- 
 dom, and he and his colleagues must act for the 
 general good, and not for any special interest 
 or trade which clamours for protection at his 
 hands. 
 
 In the protest you have sent me, you say that 
 *' while the French were fighting in 1871, the 
 trade of Coventry was exceptionally good," that 
 is, when you had no competition your trade 
 was very good ; and what you want now is, 
 that our tariff should prevent foreign com- 
 petition with you in this market, and give you 
 the prosperity, at the cost of your customers, 
 which you had last year, caused by the 
 calamities of the French. I am sorry, if not 
 surprised, that there are any working men in 
 Coventry who still think duties for protection 
 are just and good for English industry after 
 the experience of the last twenty-five years. 
 Surely it is something of a discredit to Coventry 
 that, almost alone among all the towns of the 
 United Kingdom, she should ask the Govern- 
 ment to place her upon that " outdoor relief " 
 which is intended by the system of special 
 duties for the protection of special trades. I 
 do not believe the workmen of Coventry are 
 less able to fight the battle of competition than 
 are the workmen of Bradford, or Birmingham, 
 or Rochdale ; and when the cry of protection 
 
156 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 is SO fchoroughly worn out in your ancient city 
 that it can no longer serve a local political 
 purpose, I suspect we shall hear no more of it 
 even from you. 
 
 I am sorry to trouble you with so long a 
 reply. In future I must ask you to forgive 
 me if I am silent. 
 
 T am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. Nathaniel Poole. 
 
 ON THE BIRMINGHAM CONSERYATIYE 
 WORKINa MEN'S MUTUAL IM- 
 PROVEMENT ASSOCIATION. 
 
 Addressed to the secretary of the above 
 association, and read at their meeting on the 
 8th of March, 1878. 
 
 26, Dover Street, London, 
 February 28, 1873, 
 
 Sir, — I thank you for sending the copy of 
 the speech to which your note refers. There 
 are portions of it with which I entirely agree ; 
 there are others in regard to which I think the 
 eyes of the speaker and the audience are but 
 as yet partially open. They '' see men as trees, 
 w^alking;" by-and-by they will see more clearly. 
 
 It is pleasant to hear of a " Mutual Improve- 
 ment Society" among any portion of the 
 Conservative party. There is great room for 
 improvement in the political department, and 
 some progress is evidently being made. Your 
 lecturer, Mr. Houghton, has some views of a 
 very antiquated character, but with frequent 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M,P. 157 
 
 discussion and an honest consideration of them, 
 I cannot doubt that you will discover the truth 
 and be able to correct him. 
 
 I shall be glad at any time to have reports of 
 the discussions at your meetings, if you think 
 it well to send them to me. I will not forget 
 the resolution to which you have called my 
 attention. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 The following is a copy of the resolution to 
 which Mr. Bright refers, and which was 
 adopted at a meeting of the Birmingham 
 Working Men's Conservative Association, held 
 on the 15th of February, 1873 : — 
 
 '' That, in the interests of the consumers, 
 and as a great national question, this meeting 
 is of opinion that all obstacles to the complete 
 development of the agricultural resources of 
 the country ought to be removed. That with 
 this object the malt-duty, which operates in- 
 directly as a tax on the people's food, should 
 be repealed, its retention being in opposition to 
 the principles advocated and enforced by Free- 
 traders when applied to other interests. That 
 tenant farmers, when required to quit, should 
 have security for all expenditure which en- 
 hances the value of their holding, and for which 
 they have not received an adequate return, 
 especially during the last two years of their 
 tenancy ; and that such security should be 
 binding on the successor to an entailed estate 
 equally with the owner of an absolute freehold. 
 
158 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 That compensation should be also given for 
 damage done on arable land by the excessive 
 preservation of ground game. And this meet- 
 ing is further of opinion that by thus at- 
 tracting the surplus capital of the country to 
 the cultivation of the soil, the condition of 
 the agricultural labourer would necessarily be 
 improved and raised." 
 
 Mr. Houghton, the author of the speech 
 referred to in the foregoing letter, subsequently 
 wrote a letter to Mr. Bright, laying down cer- 
 tain propositions, and requesting him to indi- 
 cate those that he agreed with and those that 
 he disapproved of. Mr. Bright replied as 
 follows : — 
 
 Eochdale, March 19, 1873. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I thank you for your letter, 
 which has been forwarded to me. If you refer 
 to my letter, you will see that I recommended 
 the working men to continue the discussion 
 among themselves, not with me. 
 
 I find letter- writing the great burden of my 
 life, and I avoid it, or try to avoid it, as much 
 as I can. You alarm me by proposing to dis- 
 cuss with me the five paragraphs in your letter, 
 and with a promise, if I agree with you upon 
 them, to go more fully into the other para- 
 graphs. I dare not enter into correspondence 
 with you, as you suggest. I think nearly all 
 the points you mention have been spoken to by 
 me on various occasions, and I must leave them 
 now without further comment. 
 
 I may, however, say that the malt- tax cannot 
 be repealed without a great reduction of ex- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HO.W JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 159 
 
 penditure, and that in my opinion farmers 
 ought to have an absolute ownership of all the 
 animals bred, and reared, and living upon their 
 farms. I cannot write further, but I hope you 
 will still examine and discuss the questions 
 which formed the matter of your address to the 
 working men. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. John Houghton, 
 
 ON THE USE OF INDIAN CORN IN 
 ENGLAND. 
 
 Written to a gentleman in Cincinnati, who 
 had addressed a letter to Mr. Bright, urging 
 the importance of introducing Indian corn as 
 an article of food for the people of this 
 country. 
 
 Eochdale, October 10, 1873. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I duly received your interesting 
 letter of the 28th of April last, and I have sub- 
 mitted it to Mr. Buckmaster, who has been 
 giving lectures on cookery at South Kensing- 
 ton, and have asked him to consider how far 
 anything can be done on the subject of the use 
 of Indian corn in this country. Hitherto 
 nothing has been done, and there are great 
 difficulties in the way, which it will take time to 
 overcome. The greatest difficulty is that which 
 attends all new things — the indisposition of the 
 people to give a favourable or even an impartial 
 attention to what is new. The chief hindrance 
 to the use of Indian corn has always been the 
 
i6o THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 want of knowledge as to the various modes of 
 cooking it. I speak now of those who are 
 favourably disposed towards it. There must 
 be men and women in this country who are 
 familiar with this branch of cookery as prac- 
 tised with you, or, if not, it would not be diffi- 
 cult to engage some American man or woman 
 cook who would undertake to instruct in it. I 
 shall probably see Mr. Buckmaster again when 
 I go up to London, and I shall urge him and 
 those with whom he is associated to arrange 
 for some provision by which all that is known 
 in the States with respect to Indian corn may 
 also be known in this country. We have 
 always to import a large portion of our food, 
 and it seems very strange that an article of 
 such great consumption with you should be so 
 very little favoured or known among us. 
 
 I cannot say more on the subject now, but I 
 will not forget it, or your letter upon it. 
 
 Yours respectfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. John H. Osborne, 
 8, Merchants' Exchange, Cincinnati, U.S.A. 
 
 ON "FEBE LAND." 
 
 Written to Mr. Gr. W. Sanders, of Stockton- 
 on-Tees, in reply to an inquiry from that 
 gentleman as to the meaning of the term " free 
 
 land." 
 
 Eochdale, November 2, 1873. 
 
 Dbae Sir, — I have often explained in my 
 speeches what is intended by the term '' free 
 land." It means the abolition of the law of 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. /OHN BRIGHT, M.P. i6i 
 
 primogeniture, and the limitation of the systems 
 of entails and settlements, so that " life 
 interests " may be for the most part got rid of, 
 and a real ownership substituted for them. It 
 means also that it shall be as easy to buy or 
 sell land as to buy or sell a ship, or, at least, as 
 easy as it is in Australia and in many or in all 
 the states of the American Union. It means 
 that no legal encouragement shall be given to 
 great estates and great farms, and that the 
 natural forces of accumulation and dispersion 
 shall have free play, as they have with regard 
 to ships, and shares, and machinery, and stock- 
 in-trade, and money. It means, too, that while 
 the lawyer shall be well paid for his work, 
 unnecessary work shall not be made for him, 
 involving an enormous tax on all transactions 
 in connection with the purchase and sale of 
 lands and houses. 
 
 A thorough reform in this matter would 
 complete, with regard to land, the great work 
 accomplished by the Anti-Corn-Law League in 
 1846. It would give an endless renown to the 
 Minister who made it, and would bless to an 
 incalculable extent all classes connected with 
 and dependent on honest industry. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. G. W. Sanders, Stockton-on-Tees. 
 
 ON THE LICENSINa SYSTEM. 
 
 A Liverpool working man wrote in November, 
 1873, to Mr. Bright, describing the deplorable 
 
i62 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 poverty, degradation, vice, and drunkenness 
 which characterized the condition of vast 
 numbers in that town, and asked the right hon. 
 gentleman " to lend his powerful aid in obtain- 
 ing for every householder a direct personal voice 
 or vote on spirit- vaults and beer-shops." 
 Mr. Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 London, November 27, 1873. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Your letter is interesting, but it 
 has made me sad to read it. The evils you 
 describe seem too vast for any known remedy, 
 and I know not who has courage to attempt to 
 deal with them. To your concluding paragraph 
 I must offer one remark by way of explanation. 
 I cannot support the Permissive Bill, for reasons 
 which I have given in the House of Commons, 
 and to those who have sent me there. I do not 
 approve of our present licensing system, for I 
 think the magistrates are not the best authority 
 to determine the number of houses that should 
 be licensed, or t.o what houses licences should 
 be granted or refused. 
 
 I am in favour of municipal control even in 
 this matter — that is, of the ratepayers, through 
 the local parliament which they elect. This, to 
 my mind, would be much better than to invite 
 the vote of the whole town ; and I am satisfied 
 that it would work better and more justly. 
 The town council represents the town, and to 
 its wisdom I would entrust the power to grant 
 or refuse licences, subject, it may be, to such 
 limits as Parliament might properly determine. 
 
 I think a licensing committee of the town 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 163 
 
 council would be a better authority than the 
 magistrates, and through it the opinion of the 
 ratepayers would be expressed and enforced. 
 I am in favour of adding to the authority and 
 dignity of our municipal government, and with 
 that view I should have been glad to see the 
 management of our elementary schools placed 
 in their hands, and partly for the same reason, 
 I would give them control over the licensing 
 system, as closely connected with the good order 
 of our towns and cities. 
 
 As we are moving now, we shall soon have 
 little to do but to fight elections, which at 
 best are but necessary evils. Parliamentary 
 elections, municipal elections, school-board 
 elections are surely enough ; do not ask us to 
 add to them Permissive Bill contests as often 
 as a fluctuating public opinion may demand 
 them. I have no objection to give opinion fair 
 play, but I wish it to act through a recognized 
 and constitutional channel. 
 
 I am, yours, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE " RESIDUUM." 
 
 On the 6th of December, 1873, Mr. James 
 Thornely, of Godley, near Manchester, wrote 
 to Mr. Bright concerning a passage in a speech 
 delivered by the Rev. A. Read, of St. George's, 
 Hyde, the leading clergyman of the Church of 
 England in the neighbourhood. The speech 
 was reported in the Hyde and Denton Chronicle 
 of that date, a copy of which Mr. Thornely 
 
 M 2 
 
1 64 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 forwarded with bis letter. The following is 
 the passage referred to : — 
 
 «c There was another great Liberal leader, a 
 most prominent member of the Government, 
 who, in speaking of the poor working men of 
 England, called them — he gave it a Latin name 
 because he supposed he was ashamed to put it 
 in English — the residuum of the population — 
 that is, in plain English, the dregs of the popu- 
 lation. That was a friend of the working 
 people of England, that was one of their great 
 men, a leading Liberal, Mr. John Bright, the 
 Member of Parliament for Birmingham, one 
 who had the presumption and impudence to 
 call the working men of England the dregs of 
 the population." 
 
 Mr. Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 Rochdale, December 9, 1873. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I thank you for sending me a 
 copy of the Kyde and Denton Chronicle of Satur- 
 day last, where I find a passage in a speech of 
 the Eev. A. Eead, of St. George's, Hyde, to 
 which you have called my attention. I need 
 hardly tell you that the statement of this 
 slanderous clergyman is false, and that if he is 
 not a singularly ignorant person, he must know 
 it to be false. 
 
 If I had applied the word " residuum " to 
 the " working men of England " — if I had 
 deemed or called them " the dregs of the popu- 
 lation " — should I have given much time, and 
 labour, and many years of my life to procure 
 for them the right to live by the free exchange 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 165 
 
 of their industry, and tlie right to vote that 
 they might share in the government of their 
 country ? 
 
 I do not remember the time when or the 
 speech in which I used the word " residuum," 
 or I would refer you to the passage. You 
 would at once see how utterly unjust and false 
 is the construction which Mr. Read has put 
 upon it. 
 
 I do not know what Mr. Eead is in his 
 pulpit, but I would advise him to stay there, 
 where he cannot be contradicted. On the 
 platform he is, what is not uncommon in the hot, 
 partisan priest, ignorant and scurrilous, and a 
 guide whom no sensible man would wish to 
 follow. His congregation should pray for him. 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE AMERICAN JUBILEE 
 SINGERS. 
 
 Written on behalf of the Jubilee Singers in 
 anticipation of their visit to Birmingham in 
 1873. 
 
 KocMale, December 23, 1873. 
 Dear Sir, — I have heard the Jubilee Singers, 
 and they have been in this town, where they 
 have met with great success. I believe they 
 intend to pay us another visit. I hope Bir- 
 mingham will receive them kindly, for your 
 great city showed a wise and hearty sympathy 
 with the United States during the great 
 struggle which delivered the slaves from their 
 
i66 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 bondage. The mission of these singers is one 
 deserving of all support, and I feel very 
 certain it will find a multitude of friends in 
 Birmingham. 
 
 I am, truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON EXTEMPORE SPEAKING AND 
 PREACHING. 
 
 The following letter, which was published in 
 the Evangelical Magazine of January, 1874, 
 was written to a student in a Nonconformist 
 college, who had asked Mr. Bright' s opinions 
 on the art of pubHc speaking and on reading 
 sermons : — 
 
 Dear Sir, — Yonr letter, written in May last, 
 only met my eye a few days ago ; it has been 
 at the Reform Olub^ and was not forwarded to 
 me till quite recently. You ask me two ques- 
 tions, to one of which I can give a ready 
 answer. I have never been in the habit of 
 writing out my speeches, certainly not for more 
 than thirty years past. The labour of writing 
 is bad enough, and the labour of committing to 
 memory would be intolerable; and speeches 
 read to a meeting are not likely to be received 
 with much favour. It is enough to think over 
 what is to be said, and to form an outline in a 
 few brief notes. But, first of all, a real 
 knowledge of the subject to be spoken of is 
 required; with that, practice should make 
 speaking easy. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 167 
 
 As to what is best for the pulpit, I may not 
 venture to say much. It would seem that rules 
 applicable to other speaking will be equally 
 applicable to the pulpit. But in a pulpit a 
 man is expected to speak for a given time, on a 
 great theme, and with less of exact material 
 than is obtainable on other occasions and on 
 ordinary subjects. And further, a majority of 
 preachers are not good speakers, and perhaps 
 could not be made such. They have no natural 
 gift for good speaking ; they are not logical in 
 mind, nor full of ideas, nor free of speech; 
 and they have none of that natural readiness 
 which is essential to a powerful and interesting 
 speaker. It is possible, nay, perhaps very pro- 
 bable, that if reading sermons were abolished, 
 while some sermons would be better than they 
 now are, the majority of them would be simply 
 chaos, and utterly unendurable to the most 
 patient congregation. Given a man with know- 
 ledge of his subject, and a gift for public 
 speaking, then I think reading a mischief; but 
 given a man who knows little, and who has no 
 gift of speaking, then reading seems to be in- 
 evitable, because speaking, as I deem it, is 
 impossible. But it must be a terrible thing to 
 have to read or speak a sermon every week, on 
 the same topic, to the same people ; terrible to 
 the speaker, and hardly less so to the hearers. 
 Only men of great mind, great knowledge, and 
 great power, can do this with success. I 
 wonder that any man can do it ! I often doubt 
 if any man has ever done it. I forbear, there- 
 fore, from giving a strong opinion on the point 
 
1 68 . THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 you submit to me. Where a man can speak, 
 let him speak — it is no doubt most effective ; 
 but where a man cannot speak, he must read. 
 Is not this the sum of the whole matter ? 
 
 I thank you for the good wishes expressed 
 in your friendly letter. My health is greatly 
 improved, and I hope to be able to give some 
 time to the House of Commons during the 
 coming session. 
 
 I am, truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE LIBERAL PARTY. 
 
 Read at a Liberal demonstration held in the 
 Temperance Hall, Bolton, on the 3rd of March, 
 
 1874. 
 
 Marcli 2, 1874. 
 
 My deae Sir, — I cannot come to your meet- 
 ing, though I am very glad you have so much 
 to congratulate yourselves upon. I dare not 
 venture upon public meetings, and am forced 
 to avoid them. If I came to Bolton, I should 
 soon have a score of invitations, and the usual 
 correspondence and difficulties about them. 
 The Liberal party has failed mainly through 
 want of organization, arising from the security 
 caused by its great victory five years ago. It 
 still lives, and may soon recover its supremacy. 
 Meanwhile the party which has triumphed 
 must march in its path. I am sorry I cannot 
 come, but I feel sure my friends will excuse me. 
 Always sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 169 
 
 ON MR. CHARLES SUMNER. 
 
 Addressed to a gentleman in Boston who 
 had sent Mr. Bright a photograph of Mr. 
 Sumner. 
 
 Charles Sumner, the distinguished orator 
 and statesman alluded to in this letter, was 
 born at Boston on the 6th of January, 1811. 
 He began to practise as a lawyer at Boston in 
 1834, and in 1851 succeeded Daniel Webster as 
 United States Senator. He took an active part 
 as a public speaker in opposition to the annexa- 
 tion of Texas, and was identified with the peace 
 and anti- slavery movements of the day. In 
 the Senate he opposed the Fugitive- slave Act 
 in a speech, in which he declared, " Freedom 
 is national, and slavery sectional." After the 
 delivery of his famous speech, " The Crime 
 against Kansas," on the 19th and 20th of May, 
 1856, he was assaulted, while in his seat, by 
 a member from South Carolina, and was so 
 severely injured as to be unable to resume 
 his public duties for three or four years. On 
 resuming his seat in the Senate, his first 
 speech was on " The Barbarism of Slavery," 
 on the 4th of June, 1860. He early proposed 
 emancipation as the speediest method of ending 
 the Rebellion ; and from 1861 to 1870 was 
 chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign 
 Affairs. He died suddenly on the 11th of 
 March, 1874. 
 
 Kochdale, April 4, 1874. 
 
 Deab Me. Kinsley, — I am much indebted to 
 you for your letter, and for the photograph you 
 
170 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 have sent me. The portrait is admirable, and 
 does justice to the great subject of it. Mr. 
 Sumner spent his last night in England under 
 this roof, and left us for Liverpool on the 
 morning of the day on which he sailed. His 
 health was very much shaken, and I was sorry 
 his voyage was in the winter. The news of 
 your great loss has made me very sad. I can 
 imagine the feelings of sorrow it will have 
 caused in the hearts of your countrymen. In this 
 country the press has done justice to your great 
 senator. His unblemished life, his noble aims, 
 and his great services to freedom and humanity 
 are freely admitted and greatly honoured by our 
 public writers. 
 
 Very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON THE CIVIL SERVICE. 
 
 Written to Mr. Dorman B. Eaton, Chairman 
 of the " Civil Service Commission " in the 
 United States. 
 
 London, April 29, 1874. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I am sorry I have been so long 
 in replying to your letter, and now I do not feel 
 that I can say much that will be of use to you. 
 The working of our Civil Service has met with 
 general approval, and, after the experience of 
 some years, it would be now impossible to go 
 back to the old system. The present plan is one 
 which is felt to be more just to all classes, and 
 it is calculated to supply more capable men for 
 the various departments of the public service. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 171 
 
 You are doubtless aware that appointments 
 with us are, to a large extent, of a permanent 
 character. No changes in persons employed 
 in Government offices, in the Customs, Excise, 
 Post- Office, and Telegraph Departments take 
 place on a change of Government, and thus we 
 avoid a vast source of disturbance and cor- 
 ruption which would be opened if the contrary- 
 plan were adopted. In these days, when so 
 much is done by the Governments, and when 
 so many persons are employed by them, it 
 seems absolutely necessary to take precautions 
 against the selection of incompetent men, and 
 against the corruption which under the purest 
 Administrations is always a menacing evil. 
 
 Your proposed reform is a great under- 
 taking. I hope the good sense of your people 
 will enable you to complete it. All the friends 
 of your country in other nations will congratu- 
 late you on your success. I have directed to 
 be forwarded to you some of our Parliamentary 
 publications, that you may know the latest 
 facts connected with what is doing here in the 
 matter of our Civil Service. 
 
 I am, with great respect, yours sincerely, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON TEMPERANCE. 
 
 Addressed to a gentleman at Bradford. 
 
 London, June 5, 1874. 
 Dear Sir, — I cannot write you a long letter 
 on the temperance question and my views upon 
 
172 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 it I am sorely troubled with letters, and am 
 obliged to omit answers to very many of them. 
 I mas say, however, that in my opinion appeals 
 should be made to all members of Christian 
 Churches, in the hope of creating a great public 
 opinion among the thoughtful and religious 
 classes in favour of temperance, and of offering 
 through them to the view of the nation a grand 
 example of abstinence from the use of articles 
 which are so seldom useful and so often per- 
 nicious. If the professing Christian people 
 would take this matter in hand, the great work 
 would go oil prosperously. Their example 
 would tell rapidly upon public opinion and 
 upon the customs of the nation, and a great 
 reform would be in process of certain achieve- 
 ment ; and as this more rational opinion was 
 created, it would enable the Legislature to 
 assist in it by such reasonable restrictions as 
 the case may require, and as the constituencies 
 would be able to sustain. 
 
 At present a few persons clamour for legis- 
 lation which the country is not prepared for, 
 and which it will not bear. The consequence 
 of this is failure — there being much contention 
 and no result. 
 
 The friends of temperance should leave Par- 
 liament, and form opinion, trusting that when 
 opinion is formed whatsoever is judicious in 
 legislation will naturally and easily follow. In 
 a great reform of this kind Parliament can do 
 little — but that portion of our people which 
 cares for religion can do much — it can, indeed, 
 do all. The ministers of religion and the multi- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M,P. 173 
 
 tudes of good men and women who listen to 
 them from week to week can make the reform 
 you seek. Without their zeal and co-operation 
 it is impossible, and a dream. If I had time 
 and opportunity, I could say much more, but 
 this may be sufficient for the moment as a reply 
 to your note. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. "W. H. Gregory, Bradford, Yorkshire. 
 
 ON TEMPERANCE. 
 
 Written in answer to a question as to what 
 Mr. Bright had said with reference to his having 
 had no intoxicating drinks in his house since 
 he commenced housekeeping. 
 
 40, Clarges Street, London, 
 June 6, 1874. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have seen no report of what I 
 said, but I have seen some extracts from news- 
 papers, hut all more or less inaccurate. There 
 may have been times when I have doubted if I 
 should have adopted the same course — not that 
 I now doubt, or that I regret what was done 
 thirty-five years ago. There is a great move- 
 ment just now on the temperance question. 
 The public conscience, even the Parliamentary 
 conscience, seems shocked at what was done 
 at the late election. There is a sense of 
 humiliation at the thought that the publicans 
 and beer-sellers destroyed a Government and 
 installed another in its place, and that distillers 
 
174 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 and brewers were the best candidates for the 
 Church and Conservative party, as most likely 
 to secure the votes of publicans and beer-sellers. 
 If the Christian Churches would move and 
 speak, a great reform might be effected; but 
 without a revival among them, I fear not much 
 can be done. The Scottish Churches might 
 banish whisky; Christian zeal and self-denial 
 can work wonders. 
 
 Yours truly, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON VACCmATIOlSr. 
 
 Eead at a Conference of Anti- vaccinators held 
 at Birmingham, on the 26th of October, 1874. 
 
 Dalguise, [N'.B., October 6, 1874. 
 
 Deae Sie, — I cannot take any part in your 
 Conference, nor will I express any opinion on 
 the question in which you are interesting your- 
 self except so far as to say that the facts which 
 have come before me seem to be against you ; 
 but I have no objection to express my doubts 
 as to the wisdom of compulsion, and I have 
 always felt that the law which inflicts penalty 
 after penalty on a parent who is unwilling to 
 have his child vaccinated is monstrous, and 
 ought to be repealed. 
 
 I am, truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. Henry Pitman, Manchester. ^ 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M,P. 175 
 
 ON FREE TRADE. 
 
 FREE TEADE IN RELATION TO THE PRICE OF FOOD. 
 
 At a ward meeting in Leeds in October, 
 1874, a Conservative speaker said ''the people 
 were no better off now relative to the price of 
 bread than they were before the repeal of the 
 Corn Laws and other protective laws." This 
 statement was forwarded to Mr. Bright, and 
 elicited the following reply : — 
 
 Corriebruck House, Pitlochry, 
 October 12, 1874. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Your letter has been sent on to 
 me, and I have only time to acknowledge the 
 receipt of it. Your opponent must be a man 
 profoundly ignorant or strangely perverse, or 
 he would have a different opinion of the effects 
 of Free Trade in corn. He, perhaps, does not 
 know that last year, 12,000,000 quarters of 
 wheat were imported, worth in this market 
 last year nearly 40,000,000?. sterling, and that 
 great quantities of other grain were also im- 
 ported ; that not less than 500,000 tons of 
 potatoes, with great quantities of cattle, and 
 meat, and cheese, and butter were imported; 
 that, in fact, 80,000, OOOZ. sterling in value were 
 imported, nearly all of which it was the object 
 of the Corn Law and other protective laws to 
 exclude from the country. More than half the 
 w^orking men of England, with their families, 
 are fed on bread which comes from abroad, and 
 it is obvious that the continuance of the pro- 
 
176 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 tective system as applied to agriculture would 
 have spread famine among the people, and 
 would have plunged the nation into anarchy. 
 
 I have not time to write more to you, and I 
 fee] certain that to add to what I have said 
 would be of no use to your opponent, as he 
 must be very ignorant, and I fear quite unable 
 to reason on a matter of this nature. If you 
 turn to the newspapers from 1839 to 1846, or 
 to the debates in Hansard, you may obtain all 
 the facts and arguments you require. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 0]^ CANVASSING AT ELECTIONS. 
 
 "Written to Mr. James Eddy, of Stockton, 
 who had asked Mr. Bright' s opinion on the 
 subject, and read at a meeting in the Tem- 
 perance Hall of that town on the 28th of 
 October, 1874. 
 
 Rochdale, October 26, 1874. 
 Dear Sir, — I can give no opinion of much 
 value on the subject on which you have written 
 me. I suppose that so long as many electors 
 are careless and ignorant it will be impossible 
 to put an end to canvassing. I think the pro- 
 prosal to make it illegal is absurd. To canvass 
 in an honourable manner is an innocent act, 
 and in many cases it is useful, and any attempt 
 to make it unlawful would fail. I speak of 
 canvassing by friends of candidates; for can- 
 didates in person to solicit votes is, in my view, 
 humihating, and the best constituencies have 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 177 
 
 abolished it, though it still prevails in many 
 boroughs. 
 
 Yours respectfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON SUNDAY CLOSINa IN IRELAND. 
 
 Written in reply to a communication from 
 Mr. T. W. Eussell, Secretary of the Sunday- 
 closing movement in Ireland, who had com- 
 plained that although forty-two of the Irish 
 members voted for the Sunday-closing Bill in 
 the preceding session, and only ten against it, 
 the Bill was thrown out by the English vote. 
 
 Eochdale, October 27, 1874. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I think you have a grievance to 
 complain of in the mode in which the House of 
 Commons treated your Bill for closing public- 
 houses on Sunday. This seems to be one of 
 the questions on which the opinion of the Irish 
 members should have a special weight. 
 
 There is no great principle involved. Drapers 
 and grocers cease from business on Sundays, 
 and public-houses are allowed to be open only 
 because it is supposed to be necessary for the 
 convenience of the public ; but if the public, as 
 represented by a great majority of the Irish 
 members, are willing or wishful to have public- 
 houses closed on Sundays, as the shops of 
 other traders are closed, it seems a most un- 
 reasonable course for English members to pre- 
 vent it. 
 
 I should recommend you to make a direct and 
 
 N 
 X or THF, 
 
 (^ 
 
 VNIVERSITY 
 
178 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 earnest appeal to tlie Government, with a view 
 to induce them to discourage the opposition 
 made to the Bill. 
 
 I have no doubt that the Treasury Bench, if 
 willing to aid you, could easily enable the Irish 
 members, who are friends of the Bill, to pass 
 the measure through Parliament. 
 
 By the help of the Government, and the 
 further discussion which the Bill will receive 
 next session, I hope you may succeed; and I 
 believe your success, whilst it will aid the cause 
 of temperance, will be more beneficial to the 
 publicans themselves than to any other class of 
 your population. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. T. W. RnsseU, Diiblin. 
 
 ON SECRET VOTING IN EEPRESENTA- 
 TIVE BODIES. 
 
 At the beginning of 1875 attention was 
 drawn in a local newspaper to the fact that 
 the Birmingham Board of Guardians voted by 
 ballot. As a consequence, some of the rate- 
 payers, feeling that by the divisions of their 
 representatives being kept secret, they could 
 not see in what degree the promises made at 
 the hustings were fulfilled, wrote to Mr. Bright, 
 asking his opinion on the subject. Mr. Bright 
 replied as follows : — 
 
 Eochdale, January 12, 1875. 
 Deae Sir, — I know nothing as to the law of 
 the case, whether a Board of Guardians can, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P, 179 
 
 according to its own pleasure, vote secretly or 
 openly. Probably there is no law on the sub- 
 ject, it not having been supposed possible that 
 a body of representatives would endeavour to 
 escape from under the oversight and criticism 
 of those whose interests and wishes they 
 assumed to represent. I should think the pro- 
 tests of the minority, and the condemnation of 
 the public expressed through the newspapers, 
 would correct this practice, unless there be 
 arguments in its favour which do not occur to 
 me. I am afraid I can be of no use to you in 
 the matter. In Birmingham public opinion is 
 generally strong enough to correct eccentricities 
 which occasionally show themselves, and I shall 
 hope it will not be powerless now. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON WOEKIJSTG-MEN CANDIDATES. 
 
 In a speech delivered at Birmingham on the 
 28th of January, 1875, Mr. Bright deprecated 
 the selection of working men to represent 
 constituencies on the mere ground of their 
 being working men. He contended that a 
 man's fitness to discharge the duties of a 
 Member of Parliament ought to be the con- 
 sideration which should induce the electors to 
 send him there, and that to choose men because 
 they belonged to the working class was a mis- 
 take. '' If," he said, " we are to have a Par- 
 liament composed of two classes — one working- 
 men representatives, and one that are not repre- 
 
 N 2 
 
i8o THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 sentatives of working men, it appears to me it 
 would be one of the greatest calamities that 
 could happen in our representative system. If 
 you can find a man, let him be a first or second- 
 class or third-class passenger, if you can find a 
 man with intelligence, and honesty, and firm- 
 ness, and the kind of capacity which you under- 
 stand for Parliamentary duty, then I say lay 
 hold of him at once and make him a Member of 
 Parliament." 
 
 In reference to these remarks Mr. Bright 
 received a letter from Stoke-on-Trent, in which 
 the writer expressed his surprise that such 
 observations should have been made. Mr. 
 Bright thereupon replied as follows : — 
 
 Eochdale, February 13, 1875. 
 
 Dear Ste, — It seems impossible to say any- 
 thing in public which will not be misunderstood 
 and misrepresented. 
 
 I have no objection to working men as can- 
 didates. What I object to is that a candidate 
 should be chosen only or mainly because he is 
 a working man, and that I should be expected 
 to vote for him for the same reason. I do not 
 vote for a candidate because he is a middle- 
 class man, or a man of high family connections ; 
 and I refuse to be under any obligation to vote 
 for one who is chosen as a candidate because 
 he belongs to some other class or section of the 
 community. 
 
 If the Liberal party in a constituency, 
 speaking and acting through its recognized 
 organization, selected a working man as its 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M,F. i8i 
 
 candidate, I hope I should give him my hearty 
 support ; but I object to have him thrust upon 
 the party merely because he is a working man. 
 The policy now recommended to working men in 
 regard to this matter is, in my judgment, fatal 
 to unity, as it is to an honest representation of 
 all classes and interests. 
 
 I hope I need not say that, if I were one of 
 your constituency, I should have no difficulty 
 in giving my vote to Mr. Walton. 
 
 I am sorry you should have misunderstood 
 me. Your letter has only just reached me, and 
 I send you this hasty reply. 
 
 I thank you for the kind expressions in your 
 letter, and am, 
 
 Very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Joseph Hulme, Burslem. 
 
 ON HOME RULE. 
 
 Written to the Rev. Thaddeus O'Malley, 
 Dublin. 
 
 London, Reform Club, February 25, 1875. 
 
 Deae Sik, — I thank you for your letter and 
 the little book on " Home Rule ; or, the Basis 
 of the Federation." I have read the book. 
 Shall I tell you what I think of two Irish plans 
 on this Irish question ? The Mitchell plan is 
 easy to understand, and if Ireland were unani- 
 mous and strong enough, it might be attempted, 
 and might succeed. It is very simple, and 
 under the conditions I have mentioned is not, 
 or would not be impracticable; but the con- 
 
i82 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ditions are wanting, and therefore there is this 
 fatal objection to it, that it is impossible, and 
 only men partly mad or wicked will urge Irish- 
 men to attempt it. As to your Federation 
 plan, the Home Rule scheme of which you are 
 evidently proud to be thought the author, is in 
 my opinion quite as impossible as the other, and 
 I must say that it seems to me far more absurd. 
 To look at it only for a moment raises wonder 
 that any man or number of men should imagine 
 or think seriously of such a scheme. How 
 many Home Rulers, how many men of that 
 faith are there in Ireland ? Certainly not 
 more than a milHon. If I give you four mil- 
 lions of the disaffected Home Rulers, Repealers, 
 Irish Republicans, or other antagonists of 
 Grreat Britain — and this is more than you can 
 fairly claim — they will give you only one million 
 of men, and of these not one half have any 
 knowledge of political and public affairs; and 
 yet you propose, in order to allay the discon- 
 tent of this part of your population, not only 
 to make a revolution in Ireland, but to do the 
 same in England, Wales, and Scotland. In 
 Great Britain nobody wants two Parliaments of 
 Lords and Commons. Nobody wants a third 
 Imperial Parliament. And yet you propose, 
 with a childish sympathy and enthusiasm, to 
 force upon England, Wales, and Scotland these 
 additional representative and legislative bodies, 
 in order, apparently, to justify or balance the 
 creation and establishment of like arrangements 
 in Ireland. Surely so absurd and monstrous a 
 proposition was never before heard of! You 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P, 183 
 
 propose that twenty millions in Great Britain 
 shall, in a manner, turn everything to which 
 they are accustomed, and with which, in the 
 main, they are satisfied — upside down, in the 
 hopeless attempt thereby to allay the discon- 
 tent of a portion of the people of Ireland — the 
 said portion of your people never having been 
 able to make a clear statement of its grievances, 
 and being, as you must feel, totally unable to 
 agree in any remedy for them, 
 
 I do not enter into any examination of the 
 details of your little book, or I might point out 
 many inaccuracies into which you have fallen. 
 I confine myself, in this reply to your letter, to 
 the main features of the two plans for the 
 regeneration of Ireland. I believe them both 
 to be impossible, but your plan of Home Rule 
 seems to be eminently childish and absurd. I 
 must ask you to forgive the plain speaking or 
 writing of this letter, but I am unwilling to 
 leave you in any doubt of my views, after I 
 have read the little book you have been kind 
 enough to send me. Since I have taken my 
 part in public life I have thought myself, and 
 have intended to be, one of the best friends of 
 Ireland, and I think now that I have never 
 been more so than I am at this moment. 
 I am, very faithfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Rev. Thaddeus CMallcy, 1, Henrietta Street, Dublin. 
 
 ON THE TICHBORNE CASE. 
 Written to a correspondent at Sheffield, who 
 
1 84 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 urged Mr. Bright to support Mr. Whalley in 
 his efforts to obtain protection for a man in 
 New Zealand claiming to be Arthur Orton. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, 
 July 15, 1875. 
 
 Sir, — You may rely upon it that Arthur 
 Orton will not come from New Zealand. 
 During the trial lOOOZ. was offered for him, 
 and nobody could produce him. It was a large 
 bribe, and I only wonder it did not bring over 
 a score of Ortons. The Arthur Orton is in 
 Dartmoor, and nobody, I suspect knows this 
 better than some of those who are pretending 
 to expect him from New Zealand. I have read 
 all the evidence and all the speeches of both 
 trials, and the summing up of the Lord Chief 
 Justice. This last I have read again during 
 last month. And 1 have read more than once 
 the evidence taken before the Chili Commission. 
 I know, therefore, as much about the matter as 
 you can know, and much more than is known 
 by nine out of ten of those who are clamouring 
 for the release of the convict at Dartmoor. I 
 have before me now the handwriting of the 
 real Eoger Tichborne, of the real Arthur 
 Orton, and of the convict, and this alone is 
 sufficient to convince any man of common sense 
 and observation what is the truth in the case. 
 If you could see this handwriting, and if you 
 could examine the evidence of the Chili Com- 
 mission, the evidence of the convict's own 
 friends, to whom he referred for proof that he 
 was what he pretended to be, you could hardly 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 185 
 
 fail to be convinced that your belief in the con- 
 vict is wrong, and your sympathy with him 
 wholly misplaced. 
 
 I mention these two points as conclusive 
 against him. There are many other points in 
 the evidence on the two trials which are fatal 
 to his claims. He seemed to know the names 
 of two dogs, but he did not know the name of 
 liis own mother. Mr. Turville, in Australia, 
 asks him a last question, whether his mother 
 was stout or thin. He said, " Stout, a tall, 
 large woman." It is not denied that Lady 
 Tichborne was leanness itself. Miss Nangles 
 said she was more like a skeleton than anything 
 else, and this was not contradicted by any one. 
 If you can believe in a man who did not know 
 his own mother's name, and who stated that 
 his mother, who is admitted to have been lean- 
 ness itself, was " stout, a tall, large woman," 
 when he first came forward in Australia, and 
 when he had no opportunity of picking up 
 information and facts to support his case, I fear 
 you are of that credulous nature that it may be 
 useless to reason with you. 
 
 I can take no part in the proceedings of Mr. 
 Wh alley and his friends. To me the convict 
 in Dartmoor is the greatest criminal of our 
 time. His crime has extended over many 
 years ; it is most base in character, and includes 
 in it almost every crime for which evil men are 
 brought to punishment. 
 
 You are much impressed, I dare say, by the 
 declarations of those who traverse the country 
 creating agitation on this question. I must ask 
 
i86 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 to be permitted to value my own judgment at 
 least as highly as that of these persons. One 
 of them is believed to have invested money 
 largely in the case, and pecuniary interest is not 
 favourable to an impartial decision. Another 
 suffers from a complaint which I call " eJesuit 
 on the brain/' ^ and this seems grievously to 
 distort almost everything he looks at. The 
 third is the lawyer who failed, after a trial which 
 lasted 188 days, to convince three judges and 
 twelve jurymen, or any one of the judges or of 
 the jurymen, that his client was anything but 
 an impostor and a man most odious from his 
 character and his crimes. 
 
 I shall be glad if you, and such as believe 
 with you, will not ask me to correspond further 
 on a question about which only honest men 
 who are in entire ignorance of the facts can in 
 my view differ in opinion. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Mark Harrison, 1, Elliott Road, Sheffield. 
 
 OK THE FOREIGN CATTLE TRADE. 
 
 Mr. George Whitehead, of the Calder Yale 
 Ironworks, Wakefield, wrote to Mr. Bright on 
 the 2nd of September, 1875, to ask him 
 .whether the restrictions placed upon the impor- 
 
 ^ The late Mr. "V^Tialley, M.P., to whom Mr. Bright here 
 alludes, had an exaggerated idea of the influence of the 
 Jesuits on the private and public aff'airs of men, and this led 
 him to the belief that there existed a Jesuit conspiracy to 
 keep Roger Tichbome out of his estates. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGH7, M.P. 187 
 
 tation of foreign cattle into our markets were 
 necessary for the preservation of our English 
 herds, or whether some other unworthy object 
 was brought about to serve the interests of 
 some selfish few. Mr. Bright replied as 
 follows : — 
 
 Eochdale, September 3, 1875. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I shall not venture to give you a 
 confident opinion upon the matter on which 
 you have written to me, but my impression 
 when the Bill was passing through Parliament 
 was that the country gentlemen were anxious 
 to make it as restrictive as possible, and that 
 its operation in the direction of protection made 
 restriction popular among them. I have not 
 much confidence in the legislation to prevent 
 cattle disease, and I distrust it entirely when 
 it is fixed at the point which meets the views of 
 county members of Parliament. High prices 
 and high rents, by the help of legislation, were 
 once greedily sought after, and will not be 
 refused now if offered under co^er of an Act to 
 prevent the importation of diseased cattle. An 
 impartial inquiry into this question would, I 
 suspect, discover that the restrictions imposed 
 are needlessly severe, and that they tend sen- 
 sibly to diminish the supply and to raise the 
 price of butchers' meat throughout the country. 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. George Whitehead, 
 Calder Vale Ironworks, Wakefield. 
 
i88 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON FtTNEKAL REFORM, 
 
 Written to a Birmingham constituent. 
 
 Rochdale, October 26, 1875. 
 Dear Sir, — If your friends or any sensible 
 people wish to reform the funeral exhibitions 
 and expenses, let them observe and copy the 
 practice of the sect to which I belong, that of 
 the " Society of Friends/' Nothing can be 
 more simple, and nothing can be better. They 
 would be wise also to follow them in rejecting 
 the fashion of wearing mourning, which is 
 always costly, and, as worn by many women, 
 hideous. I am sorry to say, however, that the 
 wearing of mourning has of late been rather 
 increasing with ''Friends,'^ among whom are 
 many who apparently do not comprehend, or do 
 not value the principles on which the practice 
 of their forefathers was based. 
 
 I am, yours, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON SUNDAY CLOSING IN IRELAND. 
 
 Eead at a public meeting held at the Town 
 Hall, Birmingham, on the 14th of December, 
 1875, in favour of the Irish Sunday Closing 
 Bill. 
 
 Eochdale, November 27, 1875. 
 
 Dear Sir, — You must excuse me if I do not 
 attend your proposed meeting at Birmingham. 
 I do not feel that I have anything to say on 
 your question to my constituents. If you do 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 189 
 
 not succeed in the House of Commons, you may 
 blame the Government, and your pressure 
 should be brought to bear upon them. They 
 refuse what Irish opinion asks for, because 
 they fear to break up the alliance between the 
 party and the " drink interest " in England. 
 The publicans say they placed the present 
 Government in office, and the Government 
 admit their obligation to them, and, fearing to 
 offend them, they influence the House to reject 
 your Bill. It is a humiliating condition of 
 things for Ireland and for the whole kingdom. 
 Perhaps the day may come when the morality 
 of the nation will be too strong for the 
 publicans, but till then we must suffer the 
 degradation which now discredits us. 
 
 I wish you great success in your labours, 
 and am, 
 
 Very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON THE EASTERN QUESTION. 
 
 TDRKISH RULE IN EUROPE. 
 
 Read at a meeting held in the Rochdale Town 
 Hall on the 4th of September, 1876, to protest 
 against the Turkish atrocities in Bulgaria. 
 
 Inverinate House, Lochalsh, Scotland, 
 September 1, 1876. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Your letter has just reached me 
 late this evening. I have no time to write any- 
 thing for the meeting. The question is not 
 
190 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 one to be treated hastily, and I almost fear to 
 say anything about it. More than twenty 
 years ago I explained my views of the Eastern 
 or Turkish difficulty. The Government of the 
 day differed from me, as did the vast majority 
 of the nation, and the war with Russia was 
 entered upon. Some of its results we now 
 know. It is said to have cost England 40,000 
 lives and 100,000,000/. of money. It cost all 
 the parties to the war more than half a million 
 of lives. Since then it has cost us 10,000,000L 
 a year in increased military expenses, or 
 200,000,000L in all, and in loans to the 
 Turkish Sultan it has probably cost England 
 another 100,000,000/. sterling. The money 
 account thus comes to four hundred millions 
 (400,000,000/.) sterling; the loss of life was 
 enormous. The policy of that day was popular, 
 and the result is what I have described. I was 
 assailed and insulted in and by almost all the 
 newspapers in the kingdom because I con- 
 demned the war and the policy which led to it. 
 The present Government accepts the policy 
 of the Government of 1854. It is now under- 
 stood throughout the world to be the main if 
 not the one supporter of the Turkish rule in Eu- 
 rope. If it had acted with Eussia and the other 
 Powers, it is almost certain the Servian war 
 would not have taken place ; and but for the 
 confidence caused by the support of England, 
 the Turks would not have dared to have com- 
 mitted the horrid crimes of which they have 
 been guilty in Bulgaria. In these crimes there 
 is nothing new. They are familiar to all who 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP. 191 
 
 know anytMng of Turkish history. What is 
 new is that the EngHsh' Government cannot see 
 the crimes till an English newspaper describes 
 and denounces them ; and that an English 
 Minister, speaking for himself and his col- 
 leagues, treats them as of small account, and 
 as the common incidents of insurrection and 
 war. I am not sure that a Minister truly repre- 
 senting English opinion would not have with- 
 drawn the Queen's Ambassador from Constan- 
 tinople, and have refused longer to receive a 
 Minister from Turkey at the Queen's Court. 
 The Government of England should clear itself 
 of all partnership in the interest and the policy 
 of the Turkish Government. It is a partner- 
 ship in no degree necessary to our interests, 
 and degrades ns in the estimation of every 
 Christian nation. Every town should have its 
 meeting, and protest against our country being 
 stained and disgraced by a participation in the 
 policy and crimes of the Turkish Government. 
 I do not think this can reach you before your 
 meeting is held, but it is some relief to have 
 written it. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. E. Hope Brown, EocMale. 
 
 ON THE EASTERN QUESTION. 
 
 THE POLICY OF ENGLAND TOWARDS TURKEY. 
 
 Eead at a town's meeting held in the Birming- 
 ham Town Hall on the 2nd of October, 1876, to 
 
192 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 consider the policy of the Government in the 
 East. 
 
 The admission of the Prime Minister alluded 
 to in this letter occurred in a speech delivered 
 by Lord Beaconsfield at Aylesbury on the 20th 
 of September, 1876, in the following passage : — 
 
 " The noble lord the Secretary of State who, 
 on the part of the Grovernment, is conducting 
 negotiations at this present moment has to fulfil 
 two most difficult tasks, and to accomplish two 
 most important ends. He has at the same time 
 to secure permanent British interests of the 
 highest importance, and he has to secure the 
 maintenance of European peace. Gentlemen, 
 under ordinary circumstances a minister so 
 placed, whatever might have been his difficul- 
 ties, would have the consolation of knowing that 
 he was backed by the country. Gentlemen, it 
 would be affectation on my part for a moment 
 to assert that that is the position of her Majesty's 
 Government at this moment." 
 
 Eochdak, September 30, 1876. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I regret that I cannot come to 
 your meeting on Monday. An engagement in 
 Manchester which I may not break will keep me 
 away from you. You meet to urge the imme- 
 diate assembling of Parliament. Lord Harting- 
 ton and Mr. Gladstone have supported such a 
 course, and though full of inconvenience, it 
 seems to me both constitutional and wise. The 
 Government will refuse it doubtless. Their 
 mechanical majority might break up or break 
 down. The House might adopt a policy which 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 193 
 
 the ministers with their engagements would not 
 accept. 
 
 There are two ways out of the existing difl&- 
 cultj, a difficulty which is not denied ; for has 
 not the Prime Minister admitted that the 
 Government is not in accord with and is not 
 backed up by the nation ? One way is by a 
 complete turnabout of the Foreign Office in 
 regard to the Eastern Question. It has been, 
 and is now, pro-Turk. Henceforth influence 
 must be honestly given in favour of freedom and 
 security to the populations of the European pro- 
 vinces of Turkey. The policy of 1854 to 185G 
 must be abandoned and revised. To enable 
 the Government to do this it must decapitate 
 itself, for after the Aylesbury speech nothing 
 can be hoped for from its chief. 
 
 The other way is for the Government to 
 resign. To remain in office, not backed by the 
 nation, to negotiate in a spirit opposed to that 
 of the nation, to continue a policy which the 
 nation has emphatically condemned, is uncon- 
 stitutional and dangerous. 
 
 I am, yours truly, 
 
 JoHX Bright, 
 
 Mr. F. Schnadhorst, 
 
 ON PEACE AND WAR, 
 
 Read at a '' Peace Conference of Christians," 
 held at Philadelphia in 1876. 
 
 Rochdale, ni»th month 22, 1876. 
 Dear Friend Daniel Hill, — I cannot come 
 
 
 
194 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 to your conference, and I do not feel that I can 
 write anything that will be of service. 
 
 There seems nothing cheerful to write on the 
 subject of peace or war except this — that the 
 influences in favour of peace are now become so 
 strong that with millions of men in arms in 
 Europe, still peace is the rule ; and nations are 
 not so much in the hands of monarchs and 
 ministers as they have been in past times. 
 
 When the boundaries of nations and races are 
 well adjusted, and when the hindrance to trade 
 created by hostile tariffs is removed, I think 
 the time will have come when the intelligence 
 and Christian feeling and the true interests of 
 nations will overcome the motives and passions 
 which lead to war. 
 
 We may hope that in Europe there will arise 
 a monarch or a statesman of sufficient authority 
 and influence to lead his own country, and to 
 induce other countries, to unite in some reso- 
 lute eff'ort for a great reduction of armaments. 
 
 We may hope, too, that as duelling is 
 gradually being condemned for the adjustment 
 of differences between private persons, so war 
 may be condemned as a practice fitted only for 
 savage nations, and wholly disgraceful and in- 
 famous when waged by nations pretending to 
 civilization and professing the religion of the 
 Prince of Peace. 
 
 I wish your conference a good result, 
 although I am not able to take any part in it. 
 I am, sincerely thy friend, 
 John B eight. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 195 
 
 ON WAR. 
 
 Written in reply to a communication from a 
 number of Bristol working men, asking Mr. 
 Bright' s opinion, wkether it would be patriotic 
 on their part to engage in a demonstration on 
 behalf of the Christian populations of Turkey. 
 
 Eoclidale, November 25, 1876. 
 Di!]AE Sir, — You need not fear being un- 
 patriotic in objecting to war for Turkey or 
 against Russia on account of Turkey. I advise 
 you to protest against war in connection with 
 the Eastern Question, and in any interference 
 on the part of England, to urge that we support 
 the propositions offered by Russia as the best 
 that can be done for the Christian populations 
 of .the Turkish provinces in Europe. You should 
 condemn this foolish and wicked jealousy of 
 Russia, which springs from ignorance among 
 our people, and is fostered by writers in the 
 press. It suits those who live out of the 
 25,000,000Z. spent annually, and for the most 
 part wasted on our monstrous armaments, to 
 keep up this feeling, and the influential among 
 them are constantly acting on the proprietors, 
 editors, and writers of the London newspapers. 
 Working men everywhere should resist this feel- 
 ing and influence. It is their blood which is 
 shed in war ; the destruction of capital and the 
 injury to industry and trade fall upon them with 
 crushing weight. But for the wicked wars of 
 past times, which now we all see to have been 
 wicked, the working classes of this country 
 
 2 
 
196 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 might have been surrounded by the comforts of 
 home and blessed with education, as are the 
 famihes of what is termed the middle classes in 
 our English society. In every city and town 
 the working men should denounce the idea of 
 this threatened war, and they should condemn 
 the minister whose loose and reckless tongue 
 makes peace more difficult to secure. I hope 
 Bristol will not be behind other towns in ex- 
 pression of opinion on this great question. 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. W. H. Godfrey, Penny well Road, Bristol. 
 
 ON MK JOSEPH KAY. 
 
 Written on the occasion of the bye-election 
 at Salford in April, 1877, caused by the death 
 of Mr. Cawley, M.P. Mr. Kay was the Liberal 
 candidate, and Mr. 0. 0. Walker represented 
 the Conservatives. The election resulted in the 
 return of Mr. Walker. 
 
 House of Commons, April 11, 1877. 
 
 Deae Sir, — I need not tell you that I feel a 
 great interest in your Salford election. The 
 time has been when I might have asked per- 
 mission to say something on behalf of your 
 candidate at a meeting of electors, but now I 
 must abstain from the excitement of election 
 contests. 
 
 I am glad that Mr. Kay is the candidate 
 selected by the Liberal committee. For many 
 years I have wished to see him in Parliament. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P, 197 
 
 His full knowledge of the land question, his 
 sound opinion upon it, his valuable writings in 
 the volume published many years ago, and in his 
 admirable letters from time to time in the Man- 
 Chester 'Examiner^ all point to him as one quali- 
 fied in an especial manner to be useful in the 
 settlement of one of the great questions, not of 
 the remote, but of the near future. 
 
 There is no other political question, in my 
 opinion, in which the working classes of Great 
 Britain and Ireland have so distinct and press- 
 ing an interest as the land question. To free 
 the land will be as great a blessing to the nation 
 as we have found it to have been to free the 
 produce of the land. Mr. Kay understands this 
 question thoroughly, and his return to Parlia- 
 ment will be of essential service in the discus- 
 sion of it. If I could speak to every working 
 man among your electors, I would urge him to 
 support Mr. Kay on this ground. I need not 
 dwell on his other claims on the good opinion 
 of every section of the Liberals of Salford. 
 
 Englishmen and Irishmen may cordially unite 
 in support of a man whose policy on the land 
 question is so broad and so wise, and so calcu- 
 lated to advance the interests of all who seek to 
 live by honest industry. 
 
 I am sorry to hear that Mr. Kay is for the 
 moment unable from illness to meet his friends 
 in Salford. I believe they will only the more 
 earnestly exert themselves to secure his election. 
 
 I wish you every success, and am always, 
 
 Sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
198 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON PARLIAMENTARY REPORTING. 
 
 On the 20th of April, 1877, a debate took 
 place in the House of Commons with respect to 
 the manner in which speeches delivered in the 
 House were reported, and Mr. Hanbury-Tracy, 
 who opened it, moved the following resolution : 
 *' That a Select Committee be appointed to con- 
 sider the expediency of providing official reports 
 of the debates of this House," which, on being 
 put to the vote, was lost. Mr. Bright spoke in 
 favour of the resolution, and the Times^ in an 
 article on the debate in its next day's issue, 
 criticized his remarks. The Editor of the 
 Times explained in a footnote to the letter, that 
 the sentence imputed to Mr. Bright, which he 
 repudiated, was spoken by Lord Eslington, who 
 followed him in the debate. 
 
 TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMES, 
 
 Sir, — I am afraid the writer of the leader in 
 the Times of this morning on last night's de- 
 bate has not read the report on which he com- 
 ments. He quotes one sentence as from my 
 speech, which I did not utter, and which is not 
 even in the Times' report of it. He further 
 attributes to me the opinion that ''every speech 
 ought to be reported verbatim, for a member 
 ought to be able to prove that he was not re- 
 sponsible for expressions that had been attri- 
 buted to him, and which he had never uttered " 
 — an opinion which I did not express, and which 
 I do not hold ; and towards the close of the 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 199 
 
 article lie asks : '* Are the members to be re- 
 ported word for word, as Mr. Bright insists ? " 
 I have not even suggested that members should 
 be reported word for word, still less have I 
 insisted upon it. 
 
 All I insist upon is, that with the present 
 size of newspapers, a size which at the present 
 price cannot be increased, the pressure of ad- 
 vertisements, the most profitable source of a 
 newspaper's revenue, does make, and will make, 
 it impossible for newspapers to give such re- 
 ports of the proceedings of Parliament as are 
 required by Parliament and by the country. I 
 advised the House to appoint a committee to 
 consider if any improvement could be made in 
 the mode of reporting its debates. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Beform Club, April 21. 
 
 ON FEEE TRADE. 
 
 A PROTECTIVE POLICY IN THE ENGLISH COLONIES. 
 
 At a banquet given at Melbourne in June, 
 1877, in honour of Mr. John Young, the Cana- 
 dian representative at the Industrial Exhibition 
 held at Sydney in that year, some of the speeches 
 turned on the subject of Free Trade, and Sir 
 Charles Gavan Duffy, Speaker of the Victoria 
 Legislative Assembly, said that, seeing that 
 the tendency of opinion in that colony was in 
 favour of Protection of some sort, he had con- 
 sulted three eminent gentlemen in England — 
 
200 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 John Bright, John Stuart Mill, and Thomas 
 Carlyle. He said to John Bright : " All my 
 life will be spent in Australia. I am a Free 
 Trader, as you know. They are going to have 
 a protective policy there. Am I to retire, 
 therefore, from public life ? ' ' John Bright, a 
 practical man, said, '' If there are particular 
 industries that can flourish in that country, 
 and if it is the determination of the people to 
 encourage them, I would grant bonuses on cer- 
 tain industries liberally, in order to promote 
 them ; or I would come to an agreement with 
 the Protectionists to protect a certain number 
 of articles for a certain number of years, and 
 let them try their experiment/' 
 
 Mr. A. Langton of MelbournCj a Free Trader, 
 who was preseut at the banquet, wrote to Mr. 
 T. B. Potter, M.P., and asked him to call Mr. 
 Bright' s attention to these remarks, and in 
 reply to the letter which was sent him, Mr. 
 Bright wrote as follows : — 
 
 Rochdale, July 31,1877. 
 
 Dear Mr. Potter, — I thank you for sending 
 me Mr. Langton's letter of the 10th of June, 
 from Melbourne. By the same mail I have 
 three other letters on the same subject on which 
 Mr. Langton has written to you : one from 
 the Secretary of the Free Trade League of Vic- 
 toria ; one from Sir Charles Gavan Duffy ; and 
 one written at Suez by Mr. John Young, of 
 Montreal, to whom the dinner at Melbourne 
 was given. 
 
 I need not tell you that I am surprised and 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 201 
 
 amused at the stir which so small a matter has 
 caused among our friends on the other side of 
 the globe. 
 
 I recollect meeting Sir Charles Gayan Duffy 
 on his visit to this country ; but I have not the 
 least recollection that we had any conversation 
 on the subject of Protection, or on the policy 
 of the province of Victoria on that question. 
 If any such conversation occurred, I can say 
 with confidence that my views have been en- 
 tirely misunderstood and misrepresented by Sir 
 Charles. The words he puts into my mouth 
 are much like in meaning what I think I have 
 seen in some of the writings of Mr. John Stuart 
 Mill, and it may be that Sir Charles may have 
 inadvertently attributed to me what he has 
 heard from Mr. Mill, or read in some of his 
 works. 
 
 If a Government voted a sum of money to 
 support a steamboat enterprise which was 
 deemed of great service to the country, but 
 which, from its novelty, or its risk, private 
 capitalists would not undertake, I should say 
 that in doing this no sound principle would be 
 broken, and that the public interest might pos- 
 sibly be wisely served. So, if a Government 
 thought that if a new culture might be intro- 
 duced into fche country, such as the grape or 
 tea, it might appropriate a sum of money to 
 make that experiment, leaving its future pro- 
 gress or fate entirely to the industry and dis- 
 position of the people. But to enact a tariff 
 imposing heavy duties on most important 
 articles of import, to establish an oppressive 
 
202 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 and costly system of custom-houses, to build up 
 special interests before tlieir time, or industries 
 which might never thrive in the free air of 
 competition, at the expense of taxation upon 
 the whole people, levied partly at the custom- 
 houses, and partly by the high prices which 
 are sought to be obtained on the home-made 
 and protected article, is a policy so unsound 
 and so injurious that I am greatly surprised 
 that any one in the least acquainted with me or 
 with my life should have supposed it possible 
 that I should have given it my support. 
 
 Enoflishmen form colonies at a distance from 
 the mother country- They throw off many of 
 the superstitions which are still to a large ex- 
 tent cherished in England. In respect of Pro- 
 tection by means of a prohibitive or restrictive 
 tariff, the colony of Victoria clings to a super- 
 stition or error which we in England have 
 abandoned. Our experience is conclusive as to 
 the wisdom of our policy. Victoria is young, 
 and thinks she knows more and better than we 
 know. But when she finds herself, not at the 
 head, but at the tail of the great Australian 
 communities as to her success and the growth 
 of wealth, she may discover that industry has 
 no greater enemy than a protective or restrictive 
 tariff. 
 
 If you will kindly send this letter to your 
 correspondent, Mr. Langton, it will not be 
 necessary for me to write to Sir Charles Duffy 
 or to the Secretary of the Free Trade League of 
 Victoria. 
 
 Believe me, &c., 
 
 John Bbight. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 203 
 
 ON KINDNESS TO ANIMALS. 
 
 Eead at a meeting held in the Birmingham 
 Town Hall on the 28th of November, 1877, 
 when prizes publicly subscribed for were dis- 
 tributed to such of the Board School children 
 as had succeeded either by writing essays or 
 answering questions in connection with the 
 subject of kindness to dumb animals. 
 
 Eochdale, November 22, 1877. 
 
 Dear Miss Goddaed, — I cannot come to 
 your meeting, but I am very glad your good 
 cause excites so much interest as to enable you 
 to hold a public meeting in its favour. If 
 children at school can be made to understand 
 how it is just and noble to be humane even to 
 what we term inferior animals, it will do much 
 to give them a higher character and tone through 
 life. There is nothing meaner than barbarous 
 and cruel treatment of the dumb creatures who 
 cannot answer us or resent the misery which is 
 so often needlessly inflicted upon them. 
 Wishing you a constant success, 
 
 I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON "CONSECRATED GROUND." 
 
 On the 20th of November, 1877, the Bishop 
 of Peterborough delivered a speech on the 
 occasion of the foundation-stone of a new parish 
 church at Loughborough being laid. In the 
 course of his remarks the bishop said : — "It 
 was his fortune, or his misfortune, to have been 
 
204 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 in the gallery of the House when Mr. Bright 
 was delivering what appeared to him to be an 
 exquisitely beautiful and touching speech upon 
 a sorely-vexed question — the Burials Bill. He 
 never heard a speech more full of pathetic 
 beauty and power ; but when speaking on that 
 subject it occurred to the great orator to stop 
 and to sneer at the observances of the Church 
 of England, and^ speaking of his own burial 
 grounds, to say, ' they have not been — what do 
 they call it? — consecrated.' He confessed, when 
 he heard that, it seemed to him to be an entirely 
 unworthy jeer, unworthy of the speaker, un- 
 worthy of the subject, and unworthy of the 
 place — a jeer at the cherished religious feelings 
 and observances of many who stood around him." 
 On reading the bishop's speech, Mr. Bright 
 addressed the following letter to his lordship : — 
 
 EocMale, :N"ovember 23, 1877. 
 
 Deae Bishop or Peteeboeough, — I have read 
 your speech, and write to make one correction 
 in it. You refer to my speech od the Burials 
 Bill, to which you give too much praise, but 
 you condemn what you term the " sneer" in- 
 tended in my mention of the ceremony of " con- 
 secration." I assure you there was no sneer 
 intended. The speech was entirely unpremedi- 
 tated. I had no intention of saying anything 
 on the question when I went down to the House, 
 and what I said arose from feelings excited 
 during the debate. When I came to the word 
 '* consecration," it entirely escaped me, and for 
 the moment I could not recall it. In my diffi- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 205 
 
 culty I turned to my friends on the bench near 
 me and said, " What is it called ? " or, *' What 
 do they call it ? " One or more of them 
 answered, '' Consecration," and one or more 
 laughed, I suppose, at mj ignorance or forget- 
 fulness, and this laugh, which was somewhat 
 ill-timed, made that seem a sneer which was 
 never so intended by me. 
 
 This charge has been made against me more 
 than once, but always, I think, in party news- 
 papers, to which 1 did not think it needful to 
 reply; but coming from you, I write now to 
 correct an error and misrepresentation which 
 perhaps I ought to have corrected before. 
 
 You will not blame me if I do not believe in 
 the virtue of "consecration." I cannot believe 
 in what is called " holy ground " anymore than 
 you can believe in " holy water," and for the 
 same reason, that there is nothing in it ; but it 
 is not necessary to ridicule all that one cannot 
 believe, although it is certain that ridicule has 
 had its share in clearing the world of some por- 
 tions of the superstitions which have misled and 
 afflicted it. 
 
 I am, with great respect, 
 
 Very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 The Eight Rev. the Bishop of Peterborough. 
 
 ON INDIA. 
 
 THE INDIAN IMPOST AND EXCISE DUTIES. 
 
 London, February 7, 1878. 
 My dear Armitage, — I am surprised at the 
 
2o6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 line taken by some of our friends of the 
 Chamber of Commerce in the matter of the 
 Indian import duties. 
 
 It seems dictated by passion and disappoint- 
 ment, rather than by reason and a sound judg- 
 ment. 
 
 India has an interest in the question as well 
 as England. If the people of India could 
 speak and act as we can in England, they would 
 oppose to the last degree of resistance any at- 
 tempt to impose an excise duty of five per cent., 
 or of any amount, on the produce of their fac- 
 tories. If they were in theory Free Traders, and 
 wished to be so in practice, they would oppose 
 any such tax, and in my opinion most rightly. 
 They would say, as we ought to say, an excise 
 duty on the produce of the mills is odious on 
 every ground and cannot be permitted. They 
 would look for the power to remove the import 
 duties to greater economy in the public expen- 
 diture, or the regular growth of the public 
 revenue, or the imposition of some new tax 
 which might raise the needful 800,000L a year. 
 The grievance complained of in the Chamber 
 can only be remedied in one of these three ways, 
 for I feel very confident the House of Commons 
 will never compel the Indian Government to 
 adopt the odious and intolerable proposition 
 which seems strangely to have found favour 
 with some of the members of your Chamber. 
 
 I see in the same discussion in the Chamber 
 objection is made to anything being done there 
 which may be termed political. What is more 
 political than a question of revenue and taxa- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 207 
 
 tion ? This dread of all serious qnestions is the 
 cause of the feebleness and general uselessness 
 of Chambers of Commerce. 
 
 I suppose the excise proposition is merely a 
 weapon to use against the Government, and to 
 compel it to act against the import duties. It 
 must fail, for it is impossible to defend it. It 
 would be much more wise to put pressure on 
 the Indian Government to lessen its expenses, 
 to reduce its English and native forces by the 
 amount required, which surely may be safely 
 done, if our Indian Government is so intelligent 
 and so just as it constantly declares itself to be. 
 
 I write this rather hastily, after reading the 
 report of the proceedings of the Chamber. I 
 am not a member of the Chamber, but I shall 
 be very sorry to see it take a course which 
 must lessen its character for wisdom, and there- 
 fore lessen its influence. 
 
 If you think any one will care about my 
 opinion, you need not conceal it. I am sorry to 
 be compelled to differ from any of our friends 
 on this question. 
 
 Believe me, always sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Benjamin Armitage, Esq., 
 48, Mosley Street, Manchester. 
 
 ON FREE TRADE. 
 
 FREE TRADE AND AEMAMENTS. 
 
 Written to Mr. J. R. Morrison, of Hamp- 
 stead, London, in reply to a letter from that 
 gentleman, suggesting that Mr. Bright should 
 
2o8 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 assist in the formation of an International Free 
 Trade League. 
 
 Eochdale, March 18, 1878. 
 
 Dear Sie, — I thank you for your letter. 
 You greatly over-estimate the force of any in- 
 fluence I may possess. The formation of an 
 International Free Trade League is a grand 
 idea, which some of our Free Trade friends 
 have often suggested ; but the difficulty is 
 great, if not insuperable. The difference of 
 language is in itself one great difficulty, and 
 the jealousy between nations is another. For 
 myself I am too far on in life to be able to 
 undertake any great work of this kind. My 
 lamented friend, Mr. Cobden, did something 
 towards it, or attempted something ; but wars 
 and national jealousies have barred the way 
 against the growth of his beneficent ideas. 
 Just now Europe is disturbed, the chief dis- 
 turber being our own Government. The war 
 between Russia and Turkey is over, and England 
 is the Power which threatens to reopen the 
 contest on a wider field. So long as our 
 people are so ignorant as to their true interests, 
 and so long as a war party of any considerable 
 influence exists among us, I fear we shall do 
 little to encourage other nations to enter the 
 Free Trade path. To abolish tariffs is the 
 only way which leads to the abolition of great 
 armies. Free Trade between nations would 
 give the nations peace, but war, anxieties, and 
 menaced conflicts make it impossible for the 
 nations calmly to consider their true interests. 
 If any opportunity offers, I hope I shall be 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M,F. 209 
 
 ready to do anything in my power in further- 
 ance of the policy you suggest. 
 
 I am, yours, 
 JoHX Bright. 
 
 Mr. J. E. Morrison, 
 *ll, Buckland Villas, Hampstead, N.W. 
 
 ON IRISH MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT 
 IN RELATION TO THE LIBERAL 
 PARTY. 
 
 "Written to the guardians of the Tullamore 
 Union, in reply to a request to present a 
 petition for an amendment of the Bright 
 Clauses of the Land Act. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, April 4, 1878. 
 Dear Sir, — I will present your petition to 
 the House of Commons. Nothing can be done 
 this session ; a committee is now taking 
 evidence on the matter. I fear that while the 
 present Government is in office there will be 
 no remedy for the evils you complain of. I do 
 not see any chance for a better (Government so 
 long as Irish members refuse to unite with the 
 English and Scotch Liberal members. An 
 Irish party hostile to the Liberal party of 
 Great Britain insures the perpetual reign of 
 the Tories. 
 
 I am, yours respectfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 To the Clerk of the Tullamore Union, King's County. 
 
 P 
 
2 TO THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON THE FOREIGN POLICY OF LORD 
 BEACONSFIELD'S GOVERNMENT. 
 
 Read at a conference of representative work- 
 ing men, held on the 4th of May, 1878, in the 
 Concert Hall, Liverpool, to consider the crisis 
 as affecting labour. The circular convening 
 the meeting stated : " We ask you to attend a 
 conference to discuss the momentous issues 
 referred to, and give such an answer to our 
 rulers as will help to save us from a blunder 
 and a crime, and thus add to the honour and 
 the true interests of our country." 
 
 At this time England seemed in imminent 
 danger of being plunged into war with Russia. 
 The vote of credit for 6,000,000Z. had been 
 given, the fleet had gone to the Dardanelles, 
 the reserves had been called out, the Indian 
 troops were on their way to Malta, and the 
 prospect was anything but promising. 
 
 Rochdale, May 2, 1878. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I cannot come to your meeting 
 to-morrow, but I am glad to hear that you ar^ 
 to meet. 
 
 After my speech on Tuesday evening at Man- 
 chester, I have not much to write. I ask your 
 friends to notice three points, to two of which 
 I referred at Manchester. I charge the Govern- 
 ment with constant deception practised on the 
 House of Commons and the country, by pro- 
 fessions of a wish for peace whilst engaged in 
 acts which are distinctly provocative of war. 
 I charge them, further, with constantly inter- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 211 
 
 posing obstacles in the way of any arrangement 
 with Eussia or the other European Powers for 
 the settlement of the Eastern Question on any 
 basis favourable to the freedom of the oppressed 
 Christian population of the Turkish provinces 
 in Europe. 
 
 There is a third charge which may be 
 brought against them, as seen in the action of 
 their party organization in London and in 
 many of the large towns of England. Through 
 that party organization they attempt to sup- 
 press the expression of opinion of thoughtful 
 and peaceful citizens, through the ordinary 
 means of public meetings, by an exhibition of 
 violence and rowdyism from which, for many 
 years past, the country has happily been free ; 
 and they are willing to accept this violence and 
 riot as the voice of the English people. 
 
 This Government is no friend to freedom at 
 home or to peace abroad; and, to add to its other 
 offences, it now introduces into its contem- 
 plated European warfare an armed force of 
 Mahometans from India, whose numbers have 
 not been voted by Parliament, and the cost of 
 whose maintenance and employment has not 
 been given in any Parliamentary estimate. 
 
 The people of England will begin to ask 
 themselves if they have gone back to the times 
 of Charles I., and if the prevalent idea of 
 English freedom and of constitutional prin- 
 ciples and practice is only a dream. I wish I 
 could speak to every working man in the king- 
 dom, and to all the members of your trade 
 societies. I would urge them to meet and 
 p 2 
 
212 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 speak at this moment of supreme interest, it 
 may be of supreme peril. The country and its 
 dearest interests are in evil hands, and it is 
 possible for a Cabinet by the same policy to 
 betray both Crown and people. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. J. W. Julian, Liverpool. 
 
 ON THE LIBERAL PARTY m 
 ACCRINGTON. 
 
 Written to Mr. John Hartley j of Accrington, 
 in reply to a letter from that gentleman, in- 
 forming Mr. Bright of the result of a municipal 
 contest, when the Liberals of Accrington elected 
 twenty-four Liberals as members of their first 
 Town Council, carrying every man they nomi- 
 nated in each ward, against a non-political 
 party, which included about twelve Conser- 
 vatives. 
 
 Rochdale, May 4, 1878. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I thank you for sending me the 
 result of your municipal contest. I hope it 
 may be only the beginning of your municipal 
 and political career, and that you may always 
 stand among the foremost of the northern popu- 
 lations in favour of Liberal principles. At this 
 moment your election has a special significance. 
 You are not in favour of war, nor in favour of a 
 party that is clamouring for war, and you take 
 the first opportunity of declaring your adherence 
 to the party which is truly anxious for peace. 
 When the working men of England compre- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 211 
 
 hend their own interests, they will give no 
 support to the war party. They will have 
 discovered that the wounds and sufferings of 
 war are mainly for them, and its profits, if 
 there be profits, are reserved for those far 
 above the men of their social scale. 
 
 We owe you thanks for your efforts and 
 services in the late contest. You have spoken 
 with no uncertain voice, and all true Liberals 
 will thank you. You have chosen twenty -four 
 Liberal Town Councillors, and have rejected by 
 a large majority every Tory, or Conservative, 
 or non-political — which last word means Tory 
 in disguise- — who offered himself as a candidate 
 for your vote. You have done well. 
 
 I am, yours very truly, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE FOREIGN POLICY OF LORD 
 BEACONSFIELD'S GOVERNMENT. 
 
 Read at a Conference of Delegates from 
 various working men's associations, held at 
 the St. James's Hall, Leeds, on the 4th of May, 
 1878, to take into consideration the subject of 
 peace or war, and to express the opinions of 
 working men on that question. 
 
 May, 1878. 
 Dear Sie, — If the trades' societies would 
 speak out for peace, there would be no war. 
 There are men and classes to whom war is 
 sometimes gain ; to the working men it is only 
 loss. Hitherto they have had little voice in 
 
214 1HE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 determining whether war should be entered 
 into. They have had to bear the sufferings in- 
 separable from it, and their blood has been 
 mainly shed at the bidding of monarchs and 
 statesmen. Now, in a question of this kind 
 the voice of the working classes is powerful, if 
 not omnipotent ; and if the sufferings of war 
 are again to be endured, their silence at this 
 supreme moment would throw no light respon- 
 sibility upon them. I would advise you to take 
 some means whereby the famous and unanswer- 
 able speech of Lord Derby shall be widely cir- 
 culated among the householders and electors in 
 the districts represented by the members of 
 your Conference. Lord Derby's name and 
 character, his late high* position and great 
 office in the Governmenty and his perfect 
 knowledge of the whole question now before 
 the country, will give immense force to his 
 arguments and opinions. 
 
 Wishing you all success in your attempt to 
 defeat the war policy of the Government, 
 
 I remain, &c., 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 THE LIQUOR TRAFFIC AND THE TORY 
 PARTY. 
 
 Written to Mr. T. S. Leedle, of York. 
 
 EocMale, September 4, 1878. 
 Deae Sie, — I have read your interesting 
 letter, and wish something could be done in 
 the direction to which you point ; but I despair 
 
OF THE RIG HI HON, JOHN BRIGHT, J/, P. 215 
 
 of anything being done at present and for a 
 long time to come. The " drink question " 
 has become a political question, and the unscru- 
 pulous political party will take care that it shall 
 remain so, and the alliance between drink and 
 the Tories will continue, and the question will 
 still be one which many will talk about, but 
 which none can deal with. I have had some 
 plan of reform on this subject in my mind, but 
 there seems yet no suitable time for saying 
 anything in public about it. Foreign policy 
 has filled men's minds, to the exclusion of all 
 matters of home and social interest, and while 
 the present party is in power there is small 
 hope of any improvement. You will have 
 observed the manner in which the Tory party 
 in Parliament hold together. It is difficult to 
 say what it will not vote for, or what it will not 
 resist, to maintain its supremacy and its power ; 
 but certainly it will not break up its alliance 
 with the great publican combination. 
 
 The Permissive Bill seems to me a great 
 error. It is not a good Bill, and men anxious 
 for something to be done are forced to vote 
 against it, while almost all who vote for it con- 
 demn it in private conversation. It blocks the 
 way, and the most eager foes of the drink 
 curse, by their pertinacity in supporting a bad 
 Bill, are thus a great difficulty in the way of 
 any considerable and effective remedy being 
 applied. 
 
 ' I suppose we must wait ; perhaps by-and-by 
 opinion will rise to the point of action ; but 
 advance is slow, and we may almost despair. 
 
ai6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 I think your letter must be useful in its appeal 
 to thoughtful minds, and I wish all men and 
 women could read it. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. T. S. Leedle, 3, Mieklegate, York. 
 
 THE PREVENTION OF WAR. 
 
 Written in answer to an invitation to attend 
 the Peace Congress held in September, 1878, 
 at Savona. The Advocate, Pietro Sbarbaro, to 
 whom the letter was written, was Professor of 
 Law in the University of Macerata, and prime 
 mover in the commemoration of Alberigo 
 G-entili, who from his chair in Oxford first 
 propounded the doctrine of international 
 
 arbitration. 
 
 Rochdale, September 23, 1878. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I cannot write to you at any 
 length on the interesting subject of which you 
 have spoken to me, and I fear my short letter 
 will not reach you in time for your Peace 
 Congress. 
 
 The situation of Europe at this moment is 
 deplorable ; its nations are groaning under the 
 weight of enormous armies and burdensome 
 taxation. They are at the same time disjoined 
 in interests and sentiments by tariffs, which 
 form an insurmountable barrier between the 
 peoples of the different States, and prevent 
 that reciprocity of interests which would make 
 it impossible for their statesmen to drag them 
 into war. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 217 
 
 How can wars be avoided and standing ] 
 armies dissolved ? This is the great question 
 for Europe, and for every nation of Europe. 
 In my own view the directealLway^triwas going 
 to say the only way — to this great end lies in 
 Free Trade between the peoples of Europe.) 
 If tariffs were abolished, or even if they 
 were made very moderate, the nations would 
 trade freely with each other, their commerce 
 would increase enormously, and they would bit 
 by bit become like one grand nation, their com- 
 mercial interests would multiply on such a 
 scale, and their natural knowledge and inter- 
 course would become so intimate, that the 
 ambition of monarchs and of statesmen would 
 be impotent to drive them to war. 
 
 The treaty between France and England, 
 negotiated eighteen years ago by Mr. Cobden, 
 has entirely changed the sentiments of the two 
 nations to each other, and if the tariff of France 
 were as free as that of England, the two States 
 would, through their interests, become as one. 
 If the tariffs of Europe were abolished, Europe 
 would not fear war, and her armies would in a 
 short time be reduced. 
 
 Monopoly in commerce, high tariffs, pro- 
 tection of the trading classes at the expense of 
 society and the consumers, such are the allies 
 of great armies and the grand obstacle to a 
 general and lasting peace in Europe. Destroy^ 
 the tariffs, or reduce them greatly, and standings 
 armies will be dissolved, for then almost every 
 pretext on which they are kept up will have 
 disappeared. 
 
2iS THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 For the disbanding of great armies and the 
 promotion of peace I rely on the abolition of 
 tariffs, and on the brotherhood of the nations 
 resulting from free trade in the products of 
 industry. 
 
 Let us try to impress on public opinion the 
 coriYiction that the protectionist system, the 
 system of high tariffs, and the monopoly which 
 some classes are eager to keep, to the detriment 
 of the people, are the principal cause and the 
 most powerful support of standing armies and 
 of frequent wars. If this idea could prevail in 
 Europe, then indeed should we be able to wel- 
 come the dawn of that day in which armies will 
 no longer be considered necessary, and high 
 tariffs a crime against the interests and the 
 happiness of the people. 
 
 I am, with great respect, yours, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 To Professor Pietro S"barbaro, Bologna. 
 
 ON THE LIQUOR TRAFFIC. 
 
 Written to Mr. Joseph Leicester, President 
 of the Workmen's Political League for the 
 Annihilation of the Liquor Traffic, in reply to a 
 resolution passed at a meeting of working men 
 held on the 28th of September, 1878, at Clerken- 
 well, calling upon Mr. Bright to frame a Bill for 
 the purpose of controlling the liquor traffic. 
 
 Eoebdale, October 7, 1878. 
 Dear Sir, — I thank you for your letter, and 
 for the copy of the resolution which you for- 
 warded me. I cannot undertake to frame a 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 219 
 
 Bill on tlie subject of the drink traffic, or to 
 take the part you and your friends invite me to 
 assume. I watch the discussion which is now 
 in progress, and I hope it may yield some fruit, 
 some plan of procedure which may prove useful 
 to the cause of temperance. The subject is one 
 of great difficulty — the inveterate custom of our 
 people, their belief that stimulants are whole- 
 some and necessary, their habitual and almost 
 universal self-indulgence in them, are obstacles 
 which seem insurmountable. While these opi- 
 nions and habits prevail, it is difficult to alter 
 the law ; a change of law, though not absolutely 
 useless, will do much less for temperance than 
 many sanguine people expect. I hope, however, 
 that what change of law can do may be done, 
 and that a more intelligent public opmion may 
 gradually be created to do more than even the 
 wisest legislation can do, I hope the extension 
 of education may give our people more self- 
 respect, and thus save them from the miserable 
 degradation to which multitudes of them are 
 now subjected by a pernicious indulgence in 
 intoxicating drinks. I am sorry I do not see 
 my way to say or do more in connection with 
 this great and difficult question. If an oppor- 
 tunity offers in which I can be of service I hope 
 I shall not neglect it. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE "VIRTUOUS POOR." 
 
 At a meeting of the Haddington Established 
 
2 20 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 Presbytery in November, 1878, Dr. Whitelaw, 
 in calling the attention of bis colleagues to the 
 condition of the virtuous poor of Scotland, but 
 more particularly of those who were in commu- 
 nion with the Church of Scotland, read the 
 following letter he had received from Mr. Bright 
 OA the subject :— 
 
 November, 1878. 
 
 Dear Sie, — I do not see what law can do for 
 what you term " virtuous poor," unless it is to 
 assist them under the action of the poor law. 
 The question which should be asked is, " Why 
 are there so many virtuous poor ? " It would 
 take, not a letter, but a volume, to answer this 
 question — but in a letter one or two points may 
 be indicated. If the law or laws make land a 
 virtual monopoly, as it is in the United Kingdom, 
 and especially in Scotland, then we may expect 
 that the population, divorced from the soil, will 
 be in possession only of a precarious income or 
 living, and that they will be subject to fluctua- 
 tion and reverses which will inflict upon many 
 of them the sufferings of poverty, even when 
 their lives have been fairly prudent and virtuous. 
 I cannot go fully into the question, but I am 
 persuaded that enormous evil to the people 
 comes from this cause. The public exactions 
 and expenditure have much to do with poverty. 
 To raise not less than eighty millions sterling 
 per annum for purposes of government, to ex- 
 pend thirty millions of it in military prepara- 
 tions and means of offence and defence, the 
 bulk of which is only rendered apparently neces- 
 sary by a mistaken foreign policy, must act as 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 221 
 
 a burden on the people, and must press multi- 
 tudes of prudent and virtuous families to 
 poverty. 
 
 These are two of the great causes and sources 
 of the sufferings of the people. They are both 
 capable of remedy, and the ignorance of the 
 people — not of the working classes, but of the 
 classes above them — ^is the only difficulty in the 
 way. If you could persuade your General 
 Assembly to look at these matters, and to 
 thoroughly examine them, perhaps its members 
 might make a discovery that would startle 
 them, and benefit the people to whom they 
 minister. I do not touch upon other questions. 
 Some of them will suggest themselves to you. 
 The great whisky question is one which your 
 friends may consider with some advantage. If 
 all the ministers of the Scottish Churches were 
 to banish whisky from their houses, and the con- 
 sumption of it from their customs or social 
 habits, they would do much to discredit and to 
 withdraw one fertile source of poverty and 
 suffering in Scotland. Many of what you term 
 " virtuous poor " suffer much from the evil of 
 whisky in connection with members of their 
 families. I am burdened with correspondence, 
 and so write hastily and briefly. I do not sup- 
 pose what I write will be of service : if you 
 think otherwise, you are at liberty to add this 
 letter to the other contributions of your 
 friends. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Betght. 
 
 Rev. Dr. White] aw. 
 
222 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON PROTECTION IN THE UNITED 
 STATES. 
 
 One Ash, EocMale, January 21, 1879. 
 My deae Mr. Field, — I never write for reviews 
 or any other periodicals. It is so long since I 
 have written^ that my hand has lost its cunning, 
 if it ever had it. I do not think anything an 
 Englishman could say would have any effect 
 upon an American protectionist. The man who 
 possesses a monopoly by which he thioks he 
 gains is not open to argument. It was so in 
 this country forty years ago, and it is so with 
 you now. It is strange that a people who put 
 down slavery at an immense sacrifice are not 
 able to suppress monopoly, which is but a milder 
 form of the same evil. Under slavery the man 
 was seized, and his labour was stolen from him, 
 and the profit of it enjoyed by his master and 
 owner. Under protection the man is apparently 
 free, but he is denied the right to exchange the 
 produce of his labour except with his country- 
 men, who offer him much less for it than the 
 foreigner would give. Some portion of his 
 labour is thus confiscated. In our protection 
 days our weavers and artisans could not ex- 
 change with American flour. They exchanged 
 with an English farmer, who gave them some- 
 times only half the quantity the American would 
 have given them. Now, your farmer is forbidden 
 to trade with the Englishman, and must give to 
 an American double the quantity of grain and 
 flour for many articles he is constantly requiring 
 that he would give if your laws did not forbid 
 his trade with England. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 223 
 
 A country may have democratic institutions, 
 its government may be republican, and based on 
 a wide suffrage, and yet there may be no 
 freedom to men for that which is the source of 
 life and comfort. If a man's labour is not free, 
 if its exchange is not free, the man is not free. 
 And whether the law which enacts this restric- 
 tion be the offspring of republican or autocratic 
 government and power, it is equally evil, and to 
 be condemned and withstood by all who love 
 freedom and understand what it is. 
 
 Nations learn slowly — but they do learn ; and 
 therefore I do not doubt that the time will come 
 when trade will be as free as the winds, and 
 when freedom and industry will do much to put 
 down great armies and the peril and suffering 
 of war. But I am writing you almost an article 
 instead of a short note — as if I would teach you, 
 which would be an impertinence. If you could 
 teach your farmers, and ask the " solid South " 
 to help them and you, you might soon succeed. 
 Believe me, always sincerely your friend, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Cyrus W. Field, Esq., ^N'ew York. 
 
 ON JUVENILE SMOKING. 
 
 Written in reply to a letter from a Birming- 
 ham constituent, who had urged legislative ac- 
 tion against juvenile tobacco smoking amongst 
 the working classes. 
 
 February, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I do not think such a law as you 
 recommend would receive support in the House 
 
2 24 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 of Commons. We have rather too many laws 
 already, and I prefer to leave such evils as you 
 refer to to parental supervision and the effects 
 of a better education among the working 
 classes. 
 
 I am, yours j &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON PERPETUAL PENSIONS, SEPTEN- 
 NIAL PARLIAMENTS, AND THE BEA- 
 CONSFIELD GOVERNMENT. 
 
 Written in reply to a letter from the Secre- 
 tary of the All Saints' Branch of the Workmen's 
 Peace Society in Birmingham in March, 1879, 
 asking him whether he would support the 
 Government in proposing a simultaneous reduc- 
 tion of all standing armies ; whether he would 
 support an inquiry into the present system of 
 pensions, with a view to the abolition of such 
 as those of the Duke of Marlborough and the 
 Duke of Schomberg; whether he would sup- 
 port Mr. Macdonald's Bill for liability of 
 employers for injuries, and a Bill for shorter 
 
 Parliaments. 
 
 132, PiccadiUy, March 11, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sm, — I cannot say ''Yes" or "No" 
 to the questions you put to me. Any answer 
 I could give to them would require explanation 
 and more length of writing than I can put into 
 an ordinary letter. I may say, however, that 
 generally I doubt not that my views are much 
 in harmony with yours on the points you have 
 raised. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 225 
 
 With regard to the liabilities of employers, 
 if I remember correctly, I was willing to sup- 
 port the conclusions of the Committee appointed 
 to consider the whole question. The Bill then 
 before the House seemed to me to require 
 amendment. 
 
 The pensions to which you refer should have 
 been terminated by purchase long ago. Per- 
 petual pensions should never be granted. 
 
 I think no Parliament should sit for more 
 than five years ; probably three or four years 
 would be a better time. 
 
 With regard to the reduction of armies, it is 
 ludicrous to think of supporting this Govern- 
 ment in any attempt of the kind. The policy 
 of this Government for three years past has 
 made the reduction of armies less possible than 
 it was before, and has been the cause of nearly 
 all the war or wars which have afflicted the 
 world during that period. They have made 
 needless wars in Asia and Africa, and were a 
 main cause of the great war in the east of 
 Europe. I hope they have convinced the 
 nation that Parliament does not exert a suffi- 
 cient control over the disposition to go to war 
 shown by the Ministers of the Crown ; but it 
 must be remembered that the Parliament has 
 partaken largely of the guilt of the Adminis- 
 tration. A better House of Commons must 
 precede any of the good things which you are 
 hoping for. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Herbert Ball, Birmingham. 
 
226 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 OUR TORY MISREPRESENTATION. 
 
 In Marcli, 1879, a member of the Barrow 
 Conservative Club read a paper before the 
 members of that institution on '' Liberal prin- 
 ciples and Liberal arguments," in which he 
 made the following statement : — " Is it fair 
 play, then, to try and make it appear that the 
 repeal of the Corn Laws was entirely a Liberal 
 measure, and that it was almost entirely for 
 the benefit of the working man, which bait 
 they know some are always ready to swallow, 
 whereas it was the employers of labour (as 
 these Liberals like to be called) that expected to 
 reap the most benefit? For what did they do? 
 Why, as soon as the working man got cheap 
 bread they lowered his wages, told him he could 
 do with less now that he had bread so cheap, 
 and I do believe the Brights were among the 
 first to do this." 
 
 A Liberal in Barrow forwarded a letter and 
 newspaper to Mr. Bright, containing this re- 
 port, and received the following letter in reply : — 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, 
 March 28, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I thank you for your note and 
 for your newspaper. 1 do not know which is 
 more apparent among the Tory speakers — their 
 ignorance or their faculty for lying. The man 
 whose speech you send me is largely guilty of 
 both. He may not know that he is ignorant, but 
 he cannot be ignorant that he lies. And after 
 such a speech the meeting thanked him, — I 
 presume because they enjoyed what he had 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 227 
 
 given them. I think the speaker was named 
 Smith. He is a discredit to the numerous 
 family of that name. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. J. C. Baynes, Barrow-in-Furness. 
 
 ON FREE TRADE. 
 
 THE CONDITION OF ENGLAND UNDER FREE TRADE. 
 
 "Written to Mr. Abraham Sharp, who was 
 chairman of a meeting of working men held at 
 Bradford in March, 1879, in favour of Free 
 Trade. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, April 1, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sir, — T thank you for your note and 
 the newspaper. The meeting seems to have 
 been a very good one, but the report of the 
 speeches is not good. The "reciprocity" 
 notion is exactly adapted to catch the consider- 
 able class of simpletons who have no memory 
 and no logic. But for this lack of memory and 
 of reasoning power they would know that the 
 "distress" in this country was ten times 
 greater in the period from 1839 to 1842 than 
 it has been from 1877 to the present time, or 
 than it is at this moment, although in the 
 former period we had protection, as much as 
 Parliament and the law could give. They 
 would know, also, that in the United States 
 the most " protected " nation in the world, the 
 distress during the last five years has been 
 more prolonged, more widely spread, and far 
 
 Q 2 
 
2 28 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 more intense than in this country. If your 
 *' reciprocity " neighbours could reason, surely 
 these facts would help to convince them of the 
 silliness of their views. 
 
 You wish to learn something of the distress 
 of the former period. I recommend you to 
 read a volume written lately by my friend, 
 Henry Asworth, of Bolton. Its title is " Cob- 
 den and the League." Any bookseller will get 
 it for you. If England could be reduced this 
 year to the condition it was in after the bad 
 harvests from 1839 to 1842, we should have 
 insurrection and anarchy all over the country, 
 and the simpletons who are writing pamphlets 
 and delivering lectures in favour of protection 
 would be flying for their lives. If your 
 working men ask for protection and reciprocity 
 after what they have seen and known during 
 the past thirty years, it is clear that neither 
 facts nor arguments nor experience can be of 
 any service to them. I am not afraid that 
 this heresy and lunacy will make much way 
 amongst them. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Abraham Sharp. 
 
 FEEE TRADE AND THE DEPRESSION 
 IN TRADE IN 1879. 
 
 Addressed in May, 1879, to the editor of the 
 North American Bevieiv, who had asked his 
 opinion as to the nature and extent of the 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 229 
 
 so-called movement in favour of Protection in 
 
 England. 
 
 May, 1879. 
 
 My dear S1E5 — I liave no difficulty in replying 
 to your letter of the 31st ultimo. Do not think 
 there is any chance of a return in this country 
 to the doctrines of protection. We export every- 
 thing but agricultural produce. To protect our 
 manufactures is manifestly impossible. From 
 another cause the protection of our land pro- 
 duce is not more possible. Half our population 
 exists on imported food. To limit this import 
 by customs duties in order to raise the price 
 of home-grown food is a proposition that can- 
 not be entertained for a moment. Such a 
 scheme offered to Parliament and the country 
 would destroy any Government and any party. 
 
 We are passing through a time of commercial 
 depression. Its causes are apparent to those 
 who examine and consider the facts of recent 
 and past years ; but in times of trouble ignorant 
 men seize upon unlikely and impossible pro- 
 positions and schemes for relief. There is no 
 special remedy for this malady. Time, pa- 
 tience, the working of natural laws, the avoidance 
 and cessation of the half-madness of the past, 
 and a general economy will bring about a cure, 
 not without some or much suffering, but with- 
 out failure. We adopted Free Trade in the 
 year 1846, but our landowners and farmers and 
 multitudes of our people did not comprehend 
 the principles we taught, and a new generation 
 is on the stage, ill acquainted even with the 
 facts of forty years ago. There has been no 
 
2 30 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 great distress since our corn law was abolished, 
 and now when trouble has come for a time 
 some of the sufferers, and some of the quack 
 doctors, who are always ready to prescribe for 
 the public, cry out for protection as if we had 
 never tried it before, and as if it had been 
 found a specific in other countries. There is 
 no danger of our going back to protection. 
 The present trouble will pass away. It has 
 been aggravated by the evil policy of our 
 Government, and that also will pass away, and 
 the simpletons who are looking for rehef to an 
 exploded doctrine and practice will relapse into 
 that silent obscurity which becomes them. 
 
 It is a grief to me that your people do not 
 yet see their way to a moderate tariff. They 
 are doing wonders unequalled in the world's 
 history in paying off your national debt. A 
 moderate tariff, I should think, would give you 
 a better revenue, and by degrees you might 
 approach a more civilized system. What can 
 be more strange than for your great, free 
 country to build barriers against that com- 
 merce which is everywhere the handmaid of 
 freedom and of civilization ? 
 
 I should despair of the prospects of mankind 
 if I did not believe that before long the intelli- 
 gence of your people would revolt against the 
 barbarism of your tariff. It seems now your 
 one great humiliation. The world looks to you 
 for example in all forms of freedom. As to com- 
 merce, the great civilizer, shall it look in vain ? 
 Believe me, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 231 
 
 ON THE DEPRESSION IN TRADE IN 
 1879 AND ITS CAUSES. 
 
 "Written in reply to a letter asking Mr. Bright 
 to support a motion in the House of Commons 
 for an inquiry into the causes of the depression 
 in trade. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, 
 June 26, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Mr. Chaplin is about to move for 
 an inquiry by Royal Commission into the exist- 
 ing agricultural distress, and I do not see how 
 or why such an inquiry should be granted 
 without including in it a more general inquiry 
 as to the present depression in other branches 
 of industry. Some people still have faith in 
 Parliamentary Committees and Royal Commis- 
 sions on matters of this kind ; I confess that 
 I have none. 
 
 A few years ago we had a panic about the 
 scarcity and price of coal, and a Parliamentary 
 Committee sat upon it and about it. The 
 Committee led to nothing. More recently we 
 had a Committee on the Fall in the Value of 
 Silver, and the inquiry led to nothing. Just 
 now we have a Committee on Co-operative 
 Stores, and it will lead to nothing, except to 
 show generally the uselessness of such inquiries. 
 If Mr. Chaplin gets his Committee or Com- 
 mission it will lead to nothing, except to prove 
 that, with free imports of corn, bad harvests 
 are bad for farmers, and that the omnipotence 
 of Parliament fails when it seeks to control the 
 seasons ; and that, therefore, Parliament cannot 
 
232 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 step in by legislation materially to mitigate the 
 admitted sufferings of the farmers. 
 
 As to the present depression of trade, we 
 owe some of it to the bad harvests, which have 
 impoverished many farmers, who are not an 
 inconsiderable portion of our home-trade cus- 
 tomers ; we owe much of it to famines in India 
 and China, and to the commercial and manu- 
 facturing distress which has prevailed in almost 
 every country, and not least in those countries 
 which have sought to secure themselves by 
 high protective duties. If our harvest this 
 year is unfavourable, I fear the recovery we all 
 hope for will be delayed ; if it is abundant, 
 which seems not probable, we shall soon see, 
 not symptoms only, but proofs of a revival. 
 
 In the United States, with a great harvest 
 last year, trade is reviving. We followed them 
 in .their depression, but not to so deep a depth, 
 and we shall follow them in their recovery. 
 These great changes are not in the power of 
 Congresses or Parliaments ; they are in the 
 ordering of nature, and we must accept them, 
 always endeavouring not to aggravate them by 
 our own follies. 
 
 There is one great consolation in our present 
 condition; the food of our people is cheap. 
 But for the free imports the price of bread 
 would be more than double, the price of sugar 
 would be three times its present price, the 
 price of cheese and bacon would be double, or 
 nearly so, and of the price of labour it may be 
 said that it would be much lessened by a 
 greater prostration of every industry in the 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 233 
 
 country not immediately connected with the 
 growth of food. The freedom of our imports 
 will enable us to pass through the present 
 time of depression with less suffering than at 
 any former period of disastrous seasons. 
 
 As to Parliament and its inquiries, I have 
 seen much of it and of them. If Parliament 
 would keep out of foreign broils; if it would 
 conduct the government of the country at an 
 expenditure of sixty millions instead of eighty 
 millions in the year; if it would devote its 
 time and labours to questions of home interest 
 rather than to those which involve the sacrifice 
 of the blood and treasure of our people in 
 remote lands, we might have hope and faith 
 that Parliament could serve the nation in times 
 of depression, and we should find that such 
 times of suffering would visit us more rarely. 
 
 If an inquiry, such as you refer to, is 
 granted, I hope it may do some good, if it only 
 shows once more how useless such inquiries 
 are. I need not tell you that the friends of 
 Free Trade can have no objection to Com- 
 mission or Committee if the Government 
 wishes to appoint one. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. Frederick Blood, 
 32, Charlotte Street, Birmingham. 
 
 FREE TRADE— ITS PROGRESS AND 
 RESULTS. 
 
 Mr. Russell, a working man, residing in 
 Glasgow, who described himself as having been 
 
2 34 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 an enthusiastic member of the Anti-Corn-Law 
 League, wrote to Mr. Bright in July, 1879, 
 asking his opinion as to the existing widespread 
 depression in trade. Mr. Russell said there 
 could be no doubt about the excellence o£ the 
 principle of Free Trade abstractedly considered, 
 but, he added, the good effects of the principle 
 in a commercial point of view could only be 
 felt when other nations met us in the same 
 spirit. 
 
 Mr. Bright, in reply, wrote : — 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, August 1, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sm, — There are two passages in your 
 letter that I must dispute. You speak of de- 
 pressed trade from 1839 to 1843 as being no- 
 thing like that which now exists. If you will 
 read Mr. Ashworth's book, '' Cobden and the 
 League," you will learn that the distress now 
 is not to be compared with that of the former 
 period. This I can confidently assert from 
 my own knowledge, but Mr. Ashworth gives 
 abundant proofs of it. 
 
 You say that in our agitation, now nearly 
 
 ^ ^ \ forty years ago, we urged that a necessary con- 
 
 5 ^; sequence of Corn Law repeal w^ould be that 
 
 ^ v^ " war would cease, and that there would be no 
 
 ; more commercial and agricultural depression." 
 
 We never said this. We said that Free 
 
 Trade greatly tends to promote peace between 
 
 nations, and that commercial depression caused 
 
 by the Corn Law on the occasion of every bad 
 
 harvest would be prevented. Before 1846, and 
 
 during the thirty years of Corn Law, there 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 235 
 
 were five or six parliamentary committees on 
 agricultural distress ; during more than thirty 
 years of free imports of corn, until this session, 
 there has been no such committee appointed 
 or asked for ; and now all sensible men know 
 that the commission to be appointed is a mere 
 delusion held out to cajole the farmers. 
 
 War has not ceased. We made the Russian 
 war in 1854, and since then the armaments of 
 Europe have much more than doubled. Free 
 Trade — imports of corn — cannot make English- 
 men or Scotchmen sensible or moral. But with 
 regard to France, every man must know that 
 our relations with France have been much 
 more friendly since Mr. Cobden's treaty came 
 into force ; and that now we are on most 
 friendly terms with the nation with whom in 
 past times we have most frequently contended 
 on the battle-field. 
 
 As to Germany and its tariff, its military 
 expenditure demands more taxes ; and by offer- 
 ing higher duties to her manufacturers, higher 
 taxes are made less unwelcome to many of her 
 people. I am not aware of any movement to- 
 wards Protection in Italy, or Belgium, or France. 
 In France the cause of Free Trade is far more 
 powerful now than afc any former period. 
 America has had her tremendous civil war ; but 
 for that and her enormous debt Protection 
 would have been dead and buried long ago; 
 and nobody surely expected or said that the 
 repeal of our Corn Law could make or prevent 
 a civil war on the great question of slavery in 
 the United States. 
 
236 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 Why don't you and your friends ask wh} 
 American commercial distress has been much 
 deeper and more prolonged than our own ? 
 Yet America has all the good which Protection 
 can give her. 
 
 We are suffering from many bad harvests at 
 home, from famines and poverty in India and 
 China, from depression in North and South 
 America, from like suffering in Germany, from 
 war in the east of Europe, and from the ex- 
 travagance and inflation of the years preceding 
 the present bad times. And, after all, our 
 people as a whole suffer infinitely less than in 
 the three years from 1839 to 1842; and our 
 farm labourers, who were to be specially ruined, 
 are receiving nearly double the wages, and of 
 that which wages can buy, that they received 
 in the three years to which I have referred. 
 
 If you use your faculties as well now as you 
 did in the days of the Free Trade contest, you 
 will not doubt the wisdom of our present 
 policy. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. "Wm. Eussell, Grlasgow. 
 
 ON CANADIAN POLICY. 
 
 Written to a gentleman in New York. Sir 
 John Macdonald, who was appointed Premier 
 of Canada in the beginning of 1879, signahzed 
 his accession to office by adopting a policy of 
 protection to native industries. Some months 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M P. 2^1 
 
 later he visited this country and endeavoured 
 to raise a loan for the construction of a railway 
 through Canada to the Pacific. 
 
 RocMale, August 16, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sir, — The policy of the Canadian 
 Government seems to me injurious to the in- 
 habitants of the Dominion, and, if persisted in, 
 will be fatal to its connection with the mother 
 country. To shut out the manufacturer of 
 England is bad enough, but at the same time 
 to seek to borrow money from her on a gua- 
 rantee for a loan is a scheme and a policy so 
 impudent that it cannot succeed. The great 
 railway project of Canada can only add to the 
 debt of Canada, and this can only cause heavier 
 taxes, and will be made the excuse for still 
 higher protective duties on imports, so that 
 England's generous but foolish help to the 
 colony, if further given, will tend directly to 
 cripple the trade between them. I believe the 
 present policy of the Canadian Government is 
 inflicting a wound on the union between the 
 colony and England from which, if it be not 
 speedily reversed, great changes must come. I 
 watch the progress of the protection malady in 
 the States and in Canada with great interest. 
 I cannot think it will continue very long. Your 
 letters will do something to weaken its hold 
 upon those affected by it. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
238 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 OlSr WAR. 
 
 In the autumn of 1879, Mr. Alexander H. 
 Urquliart, of Mancliester, wrote to Mr. Bright, 
 asking his opinion on war, and particularly 
 whether he would do away with war and armies 
 altogether. Mr. Bright wrote in reply as 
 follows : — 
 
 One Ash, Kochdale, August 18, 1879. 
 
 Dbae Sie, — I have not time to write fully 
 upon the question. It is one on which men 
 should make up their minds as to their own 
 personal duty. So far men have defended war 
 as if it were a natural condition of things which 
 must always continue. It might be true that 
 war could not always be avoided, and that in some 
 cases it might be justifiable, and yet, granting 
 this, it might be shown that nineteen out of 
 every twenty wars which might have been waged 
 ought to have been avoided, and were criminal 
 in the highest degree. I believe that all our 
 wars since the time and accession of William III. 
 might have been avoided on principles which 
 do not require the absolute condemnation of 
 war in every possible case that may be suggested 
 or imagined. We need not discuss the ques- 
 tion as you put it. We shall change the policy 
 and the aspect of our country and of the world, 
 if we leave the demon of war to the cases in 
 which there seems to Christian and rational 
 men no escape from the miseries he inflicts upon 
 mankind. I would advise you not to trouble 
 yourself with the abstract question. The prac- 
 tical question is the one which presses, and 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MR 239 
 
 when we have settled that, there will remain 
 very little of the mischief to contend about or 
 to get rid of. If you wish to know the best 
 argument against war, I would recommend you 
 to read Jonathan Dymond's *' Essays on the 
 Principles of Morality," orhis " Essay on "War." 
 You may obtain them from Mr. Harris, 5, 
 Bishopsgate Street Without, London. 
 
 I am, yours, &c., 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON THE GAME LAWS. 
 
 Written in reply to a letter from Mr. W. A. 
 Sothern of Lowestoft, who had called Mr. 
 Bright' s attention to some remarks made upon 
 his conduct as to the Game Laws and Malt Tax 
 by Mr. J. S. Gardiner at a late meeting of the 
 Farmers' Alliance at Ipswich. 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, November 16, 1879. 
 Deae Sie, — Mr. Gardiner, who spoke at the 
 Farmers' Alliance meeting, is very ignorant or 
 very unjust in what he said about my conduct 
 on the Game Law question. I never promised 
 the repeal of the Malt Tax or the Game Laws. 
 I undertook to bring the subject of the Game 
 Laws before Parliament, and in the session of 
 1845 I moved for and obtained a committee to 
 inquire into it. The evidence was laid before 
 Parliament and the public, and I went to the 
 expense of 300L in publishing an abstract of 
 the evidence, in the hope that farmers especially 
 might be made acquainted with it. I am sorry 
 
240 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 to say tliat I discovered that farmers did not 
 buy books, and my digest of the evidence did 
 not, I fear, circulate largely among them. It 
 was prepared by my late friend, Mr. Welford, 
 who was a good farmer and a good lawyer, and 
 the case made out in it against the Game Laws 
 was unanswerable. After this I submitted a 
 Bill for the removal of the same nuisance to the 
 House of Commons, but it received no support 
 from the large party in the House who call 
 themselves farmers' friends. On other occa- 
 sions I have spoken against the Game Laws, 
 and ten years ago, when I was a member of the 
 late Government, I spoke strongly against them, 
 and declared my opinion that farmers would 
 never have their rights in this question until 
 they were in absolute possession of all the 
 animals which fed on their farms. 
 
 I may tell Mr. Gardiner that I unfortunately 
 found that farmers dared not or would not 
 make any combined effort to do themselves 
 justice ; that they still voted for " farmers' 
 friends," who in Parliament do nothing for 
 farmers but watch keenly after the interests of 
 landlords ; and I was, therefore, compelled to 
 abandon a question and a cause in which I 
 found that I could do no good. I turned my 
 attention to other questions, leaving Game Law 
 reform, which means Game Law abolition, to 
 some time of calamity, when farmers' rights 
 and the public interest would force themselves 
 on the notice of Parliament. If that time has 
 now come, I shall be as willing as I was thirty- 
 four years ago to offer to Mr. Gardiner and his 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP 241 
 
 friends any help it may be in my power to 
 render them. 
 
 I would now advise speakers at meetings of 
 the Farmers' Alliance not to attack their friends, 
 and Mr. Gardiner will do well to inform him- 
 self more accurately before he again speaks to 
 a meeting of farmers on the subject of the 
 Game Laws. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. William Alexander Sothem, Lowestoft. 
 
 ON THE STUDY OF POLITICAL 
 QUESTIONS. 
 
 Read at the annual meeting of the Hollin- 
 wood Liberal Association on the 6th of De- 
 cember, 1879. 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, November 17, 1879. 
 Deae Sie, — I thank you for your invitation, 
 although I shall not be able to be present with 
 you on the 6th of December. It is pleasant to 
 hear of your success in the district you repre- 
 sent, and I hope it may increase, and that your 
 strength may grow. If men knew how much 
 the good of their country and their own in- 
 terests are affected by wise or unwise govern- 
 ments, they would study political questions 
 more, and many evils from which we now suffer 
 might, and would be, removed. I hope your 
 efforts may do something to promote the change 
 o{ Government and change of policy which the 
 conduct of the present administration has made 
 
242 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 SO needful. I trust you will have a successful 
 meeting, and that the Liberal unity and opinion 
 among you may be largely interested. 
 
 Believe me, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE CRIMEAN WAR. 
 
 On the 11th of December, 1879, Mr. Side- 
 bottom, M.P., addressed his constituents of the 
 Dukinfield portion of the borough of Sfcalybridge, 
 and in the course of his remarks, alluding to 
 the Crimean war, with which he charged the 
 liiberal Government of that time, said : — '' Mr. 
 Bright went to St. Petersburg as the apostle 
 of peace. The Government hesitated and vacil- 
 lated, played fast and loose, blew hot and cold, 
 until Russia was encouraged to believe that our 
 ancient spirit was decayed and degenerated, 
 that we should talk for ever, but never fight, 
 till at last we drifted into one of the most 
 dreadful wars of modern times." Mr. Side- 
 bottom also said that Mr. Cobden once uttered 
 these words in the House of Commons : — " I 
 declare before God and this House that in my 
 conscience I believe if the Tory Government 
 had been in power we should have had no 
 Crimean war." 
 
 Mr. Bright's attention having been called to 
 these remarks by Mr. W. Summers of Sunny- 
 side, Ashton-under-Lyne, elected member for 
 Staly bridge in 1880, the right hon. gentleman 
 wrote the following reply: — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 243 
 One Ash, Kochdale, December 13, 1879. 
 
 Dear Sir, — We do not expect the Tory 
 speakers to be accurate. 
 
 I was never in St. Petersburg, and had 
 nothing to do with the deputation to which Mr. 
 Sidebottom, I presume, refers. 
 
 As to his quotation from Mr. CobdcD, I know 
 nothing of it. If tbe Tory party had been in 
 office and the Liberals in opposition, nobody 
 can say positively what would have happened, 
 but what we know is that the Whig leaders 
 blundered into the war, and the Tory Opposi- 
 tion did their utmost to urge them into it. 
 They incessantly attacked Lord Aberdeen on 
 the ground that he was disposed to submit to 
 Russia. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON FAGOT VOTING. 
 
 A correspondent of the Birmingham Daily Post 
 having called Mr. Bright 's attention to a speech 
 delivered by him in 1845 in which, speaking of 
 the Anti-Corn-Law League, he said " they had 
 asked their Free Trade friends in the northern 
 counties to invest some of their property so as 
 to be able to defend their rights and liberties 
 at the hustings," and that accordingly *' their 
 friends in Lancashire, Cheshire, and Yorkshire 
 had invested a sum of not less than 250,000Z. in 
 the purchase of county qualifications," and 
 having asked whether this did not savour of 
 fagot voting, received the following reply : — 
 
 R 2 
 
244 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, December 20, 1879. 
 SiE, — The votes obtained by friends of Free 
 Trade in 1845 were obtained by the real posses- 
 sion of a real property. The fagot votes to 
 which objection is made are created by a deed 
 giving a rent-charge upon a property for which 
 it is understood nothing is paid, and on which 
 nothing is received; the whole thing being on 
 paper or parchment, and no real ownership 
 being created or intended. 
 
 I am, respectfully, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON EEADING THE BIBLE IN BOAED 
 SCHOOLS. 
 
 One of the candidates for election on the 
 West Bromwich School Board in 1880 having 
 asserted that Mr. Bright, among other leading 
 Liberals, was in favour of giving religious 
 instruction in Board Schools, another candidate 
 wrote to Mr. Bright on the subject, and received 
 the following reply : — 
 
 House of Commons, February 20, 1880. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I must not take any part in your 
 discussions or contests, but my opinion is that 
 if you go beyond the old practice of the British 
 School system of reading a portion of scripture 
 without note or comment, you will find your- 
 selves in great difficulties, without doing any- 
 thing to promote religion or peace. 
 
 I am, yours respectfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 245 
 
 ON THE TRADE BETWEEN ENGLAND 
 AND THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 Written to Mr. Alfred Gray, Secretary of the 
 Agricultural Board of the State of Kansas, 
 acknowledging receipt of a copy of one of Mr. 
 Gray's agricultural reports. 
 
 One Ash, Kochdale, January 3, 1880. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have received the volume you 
 have kindly forwarded to me. It contains 
 much apparently exact and interesting informa- 
 tion on agricultural affairs and on land in your 
 State. There is a growing desire here to know 
 more of your progress, and there are signs that 
 emigration is on the increase. There is, too, 
 among both farmers and landowners, a great 
 fear that you will beat them in their own 
 markets. I am inclined to think that the panic 
 will subside, and that if we have good seasons 
 our agriculture will return at least to a mode- 
 rate prosperity. I hope your world and ours 
 may help each other. We take everything you 
 have to sell freely, without customs duties, 
 except tobacco and spirits, and on these our 
 duties are only for revenue, for we have equal 
 duties on spirits, and we prohibit the growth of 
 tobacco, while you charge with extravagant 
 duties nearly everything you take from us and 
 that we can or could send you. If in commer- 
 cial matters and in agriculture you could annex 
 the United Kingdom, it would be a great and 
 good thing for both. 
 
 Believe me, truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
246 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON THE BEACONSPIELD GOVERN- 
 MENT AND ON COUNTY MEMBERS. 
 
 Written to a Nonconformist minister at Tor- 
 quay, and read at a meeting held in that town 
 in March, 1880, in support of the candidature 
 of Lieutenant-Colonel Sterling, the Liberal 
 candidate for East Devon. 
 
 March, 1880. 
 
 Deae, Sir, — I have received your friendly 
 letter this * morning. Sir Stafford, I suspect, 
 will not feel very lively. Your meeting will 
 be in good spirits. The conspiracy at head- 
 quarters is exposed and broken up, and every 
 additional Liberal vote will speak more dis- 
 tinctly the general condemnation of the worst 
 Government we have had for more than fifty 
 years. The counties are opening their eyes to 
 the imposture they so long believed in and 
 supported ; their " friends," the '' farmers' 
 friends," are being found out. The county 
 gentlemen, the county members, are the great 
 obstructive party in the House, and they are 
 the supporters of every form of extravagance 
 the Government may indulge in. I hope in 
 your county the farmers may see something of 
 their true interests. The Liberal party have 
 given freedom and much legislation to the 
 towns. Freedom for the counties can only 
 come from the same source. I hope on Friday 
 next you will have to rejoice over another great 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 247 
 
 victory gained by tlie Liberal electors of the 
 division of your county. 
 
 Yours, very sincerely, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THREE-CORNERED CONSTI- 
 TUENCIES. 
 
 Read at the opening of a new Liberal club at 
 Piatt Bridge, near Wigan, on the 20th of July, 
 1880. 
 
 Wigan is in the south-west division of Lan- 
 cashire. 
 
 London, July, 1880. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I cannot hope to be present at 
 your meeting; but I may congratulate you on 
 your activity, and upon your resolve to do some- 
 thing to change and improve the representation 
 of your division of our county. Much may be 
 done by labour bestowed on registration and 
 organization, and you have a good field before 
 you. In our division of the county a great 
 change has been made. There is now, I believe, 
 only one Tory member returned from the con- 
 stituencies of the south-east division, and he is 
 in thehumihating condition of being the minority 
 member. He sits by virtue, not of the good- 
 will or vote of a majority of the electors of Man- 
 chester, but by a contrivance invented to cripple 
 the Parliamentary influence of the great popu- 
 lations and constituencies. His sitting in Par- 
 liament is by a direct violation of the ancient 
 principle of the Constitution, which in all past 
 time gave to majorities the right to select and to 
 
248 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 elect members of the House of Commons. I 
 hope you will be able, by the time another 
 general election occurs, to place your division 
 in a position as advantageous and as creditable 
 as that now occupied by the south-east division 
 and by the boroughs within its limits. 
 
 1 am, yours very truly, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON BEING ELECTED LORD RECTOR OF 
 GLASGOW UNIVERSITY. 
 
 Written to the President of the Glasgow 
 University Liberal Club : — 
 
 Stratford-on-Avon, November 22, 1880. 
 
 DeaIv Sie, — I beg to thank you for your letter 
 informing me of my election to the office of Lord 
 Rector of Glasgow University. I am much in- 
 debted to you and your friends for the high 
 favour that has been shown to me, but I cannot, 
 I fear, reciprocate the enthusiasm of which you 
 speak. If I am sensible of the kindness and 
 good opinion of the students, and desire to 
 rejoice in the success of your efforts, I am not 
 less conscious that I have very little claim to the 
 distinguished position in which I am placed. 
 lb is fortunate for me that the duties of the office 
 to which you have called me, but to which I did 
 not aspire, are light, and not immediately press- 
 ing. During its term I shall hope to have an 
 opportunity of presenting myself before your 
 constituency, and of delivering the address 
 which is expected from me. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 249 
 
 I can now only ask you and those by whose 
 support I have been elected to accept my grate- 
 ful thanks for the confidence they have placed 
 in me. 
 
 I am, &C.5 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON MONARCHS, AEISTOCRACY, AND 
 LANDOWNERS. 
 
 On the 16th of November, 1880, Mr. Bright 
 delivered a speech at Birmingham, in which, 
 iJluding to Lord Beaconsfield's remark that the 
 iffairs of the world were conducted by monarchs 
 ind statesmen, he said : '* I for my share do 
 not learn from history that everything has been 
 wisely done that has been done by monarchs 
 and by statesmen. On the contrary, almost all 
 the greatest crimes of history have been com- 
 mitted, and all the greatest calamities have been 
 brought upon mankind, through the instrumen- 
 tality of monarchs and of statesmen. I would 
 •ather have the judgment of an intelligent and 
 noral people informed as to their interest and 
 their duties." 
 
 Mr. Bright then proceeded to comment upon 
 the misgovernment which had characterized the 
 treatment of the Irish people by England, and 
 he condemned the system of land tenure in Ire- 
 land, by which the land was kept in the hands 
 of a few proprietors, and the tenants were denied 
 any security for their holdings. Finally he 
 blamed the House of Lords for throwing out 
 Mr. Forster's Compensation for Disturbance 
 
250 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 Bill. It was in this speech that occurred the 
 famous sentence, " Force is not a remedy." 
 
 The Earl of Carnarvon, who was staying at 
 Madeira, on reading the speech, addressed a long 
 letter to Mr. Bright, in which he defended the 
 institutions of monarchy and the House of 
 Lords, protested against censure being applied 
 to the aristocracy and landowners, and remon- 
 strated with Mr. Bright for having used lan- 
 guage which he considered unbecoming in a 
 Minister of the Crown. Lord Carnarvon con- 
 cluded his letter as follows : — '' In conclusion, I 
 will only add that in what I have now said I am 
 not assailing the principle of democracy, or 
 desiring to limit its fair and full scope. Rightly 
 understood, it has its part in our form of govern- 
 ment, and the greatest thinkers and statesmen 
 have endeavoured to combine in harmonious 
 proportions the everlasting principles of 
 monarchy, aristocracy, and democracy. My 
 object in this remonstrance is to protest 
 against the public repudiation of two of these 
 principles by one who, by the office which he has 
 undertaken, is bound to be a faithful guardian 
 of the Constitution in its integrity." 
 
 Mr. Bright replied to Lord Carnarvon as 
 follows : — 
 
 Rochdale, December 25, 1880. 
 Your letter of the 8th of December, which 
 appeared in the London papers of yesterday 
 morning, reached me last night. You condemn 
 me for attacks on the sovereign, the aristocracy, 
 and the landowners. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 25 i 
 
 I have defended the monarchy ; the defence 
 is little needed in this country and in this reign. 
 I have warned the aristocracy of danger I wished 
 them to shun. As to landowners, I have been 
 one of the most prominent supporters of a policy 
 so necessary for the country and so wise for 
 them, that, had it been obstinately resisted, the 
 great landowners of England and Scotland 
 would long ago have been running for their 
 lives, as some Irish landowners are reported to 
 be doing now. 
 
 I will not reply at length to your letter ; it is 
 enough to acknowledge the receipt of it. I am 
 content to leave my speech and your letter to 
 the judgment of the pubHc. 
 
 I am, yours faithfully, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 The Eight Hon. the Earl of Carnarvon, Madeira. 
 
 ON TORY CLERGY. 
 
 Written to Mr. G. Pratt, of Southend, Essex. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, January 11, 1881. 
 Deae Sir, — I thank you for sending me the 
 report of the speeches at the dinner of the Con- 
 servative Association. It is sad to witness the 
 recklessness of Tory clergy when they speak at 
 Tory dinners. The ignorance and untruthful- 
 ness displayed are amazing and shocking. In 
 their clerical reading they seem never to have 
 met with the passage, *' Thou shalt not bear 
 false witness." I do not know what Mr. 
 
252 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 Thackeray is in the pulpit, but surely on a plat- 
 form, as a public speaker, he is an example to 
 be carefully avoided. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON THE POLICY OF THE GLADSTONE 
 GOVERNMENT IN THE TRANSVAAL, 
 AND ON THE HON. JAMES LOW- 
 THER. 
 
 Addressed to Mr. George Howard while a 
 candidate for the representation of East Cum- 
 berland, in February, 188L 
 
 February, 1881. 
 
 Deae Sm, — I am sorry to hear that an at- 
 tempt is being made to injure your cause by a 
 condemnation of the course taken by the 
 Government in the deplorable conflict which has 
 arisen in the Transvaal. This difficulty, as you 
 know, has not come from the conduct of the 
 Government ; it is one of the legacies left us by 
 the policy and blunders of our predecessors. I 
 may tell you that the Government is most 
 anxious to restore peace in South Africa, and 
 that efforts are now directed to be made to bring 
 about a cessation of hostilities, and to promote 
 a negotiation for the restoration of peace on 
 terms which there is reason to hope the Trans- 
 vaal people will be willing to accept. 
 
 I see that your opponent is not careful as to 
 what he says on the state of Ireland. He has 
 been Chief Secretary to the Lord-Lieutenant of 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.R 253 
 
 Ireland, and a secretary less qualified to show- 
 sympathy for the people of the country, or to 
 aid in its pacification, I have not known during 
 my public life, extending over forty years. He 
 considers the great Acts of 1870, the Church 
 Act and the Land Act, one as a measure of 
 spoliation and the other as one of confiscation. 
 If he were now in ofl&ce I know not to what sad 
 end the present confusion in Ireland might be 
 brought. I hope your electors may consider the 
 policy of the Government, and may compare it 
 with that of the Go vernment they have succeeded, 
 and that your farmers may remember that during 
 last session the attempt to do justice to them in 
 the matter of ground game was bitterly opposed 
 by the party to which your opponent belongs. 
 
 I am, yours, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 George Howard, Esq. 
 
 ON THE TRANSVAAL PEACE. 
 
 An International Address, which was pro- 
 posed during the presence in this country of 
 Mr. Stuyt, Mr. Zylstra, and Mr. Schmiill, the 
 delegates of the Dutch Transvaal Committee, 
 and which had received numerous signatures in 
 Holland, Germany, Hungary, France, and Italy, 
 was forwarded to Mr. Bright in March, 1881, 
 by Mr. Karl Blind, to whom the right hon. 
 gentleman returned the following reply : — 
 
 132, PiccadiUy, March 14, 1881. 
 
 ' Dear Sir, — I thank you for the memorial 
 
254 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 you have forwarded to me, and for the friendly 
 letter from yourself on tlie sad question of tlie 
 Transvaal difficulty. I hope the prospect is 
 one of peace, and not of further war, and that 
 an arrangement may be made satisfactory to 
 the Transvaal people, and honourable to this 
 country. I scarcely need to assure you that 
 whatever influence I possess is being and will be 
 exerted in favour of peace. The conflict is one 
 in which England can gain nothing, not even 
 military glory, which is the poorest kind of 
 glory, in my view, which men and nations 
 strive for. I hope the time may come when 
 nations will seek and obtain honourable renown 
 by deeds of mercy and justice. 
 
 This reply to your letter and the memorial is 
 brief, but, under the circumstances, I feel sure 
 you and your friends will excuse its brevity. 
 Believe me to be, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Karl Blind, Esq., 
 3, Winchester Road, South Hampstead, N.W. 
 
 ON THE TRANSVAAL PEACE. 
 
 Another address with reference to the Trans- 
 vaal difficulty was presented to Mr. Bright by 
 Mr. Buisson, a French journalist resident in 
 London. The address emanated from a 
 number of leading French Liberals, and was 
 signed by about thirty members of the French 
 Senate, certain deputies and members of the 
 Paris Municipal Council, the French Academy, 
 &c. To this memorial Mr. Bright wrote the 
 following reply : — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 255 
 
 London, March 23, 1881. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I was glad to havethe opportunity 
 of speaking to you yesterday during your sliort 
 visit, when you presented to me an address on 
 the subject of the Transvaal war from the 
 eminent French Liberals whose names I find 
 appended to it. They have done me great 
 honour in selecting me as in any manner worthy 
 to be considered a representative of the friends 
 of international justice, peace, and good- will 
 between nations. I accept the address with 
 much pleasure, and I can ask now to be per- 
 mitted to rejoice with them in the happy settle- 
 ment of a difficulty and of a conflict which has 
 excited in their minds, as in mine, so deep a 
 grief. I believe the English people will gladly 
 sustain a Government which has restored peace 
 by a course at once magnanimous and just, and 
 I feel entire confidence that its policy will be 
 approved in all foreign countries by " friends 
 of international justice, peace, and good-will 
 between nations." I ask you to convey to the 
 eminent Frenchmen who have signed the address 
 my warm thanks for the great compliment they 
 have paid me. 
 
 I am, &c., &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 M. Buisson, Saville Club. 
 
 ON FREE TRADE. 
 
 MR. HERMON's protective PROPOSALS. 
 
 On Tuesday, the 15th of March, 1881, Mr. 
 Hermon, member for Preston, delivered a speech 
 
256 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 in the Area of tlie Corn Exchange of that town, 
 in which he advocated a return to Protection. 
 A Preston gentleman sent a copy of the speech 
 to Mr. Bright, and received the following 
 replj : — 
 
 132, Piccadilly, March 18, 1881. 
 
 Dear Sie, — I have read Mr. Hermon's speech 
 to which you refer me. I am not amazed at the 
 ignorance it displays, or its misrepresentation 
 of facts. He does not tell how he proposes to 
 protect by new tariff duties the factory- workers 
 or the mill- workers of Preston. His constituents 
 are exporters of cotton goods to all quarters of 
 the globe ; they compete with all foreign manu- 
 facturers in all foreign markets. How can he 
 protect them by re-imposing duties on the 
 import of cotton goods, which they so largely 
 export ? 
 
 Does he intend to give a bounty out of the 
 general taxes on all goods they export, as he 
 says " he would give a bonus on every acre of 
 land that a farmer of this country chooses to 
 till and crop with corn " ? 
 
 He proposes to give out of the taxes a bonus, 
 how much he does not say, but so much per 
 acre on all land growing corn, doubtless to 
 enable the farmers to pay a higher rent than the 
 land is worth, and to limit our supplies of corn 
 from the United States, Canada, and other 
 countries ! 
 
 Mr. Hermon did not tell his audience that 
 between the harvests of 1879 and 1880, that is 
 in the year after the bad harvest of 1879, out of 
 every four loaves of bread eaten by thepeojple of the 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 257 
 
 United Kingdom three loaves came from abroad, 
 and that in no other year in his lifetime or in 
 mine have our people been fed so cheaply or on 
 bread of such excellent quality. 
 
 What must Mr. Hermon think of the mental 
 condition of his constituents when he ventured 
 to utter to them the confused nonsense of his 
 speech, and what must every intelligent elector 
 of your town think of a representative in Par- 
 liament who has not advanced a step beyond 
 the benighted ignorance of forty years ago ? 
 
 If you wish to see this question of Free Frade 
 and our trade well discussed, I advise you to pay 
 sixpence for the little book published by Messrs. 
 Cassell, Fetter, and Gralpin, of London, entitled 
 " Free Trade and English Commerce," written 
 by Mr, Mongredin. I wish every elector in 
 Preston could have it and read it, and I may 
 recommend it to Mr. Hermon as a book out of 
 which he may begin to learn something of correct 
 facts and sound arguments on the question of 
 Free Trade, and on the results of our policy as 
 adopted by Sir Robert Peel and Mr. Gladstone 
 since the year 1841. I have not time to write 
 you at greater length. The little book I have 
 mentioned will tell you the truth on the facts 
 and results of our Free-Trade policy. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON FREE TRADE, 
 
 THE FRENCH AND AMERICAN TARIFFS. 
 
 In March, 1881, Mr. Bphraim Rigg, of Drigh- 
 
 8 
 
258 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 lington, near Leeds, addressed to Mr. Bright a 
 few questions on the subject of Free Trade 
 versus Foreign Tariffs, and received the follow- 
 ing reply : — 
 
 London, March 29, 1881. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have not time to answer your 
 letters at length. If you will read the little 
 book to which I referred in my letter on the 
 speech of the Member for Preston, you may 
 learn much from it — more than I can tell you 
 in any letter I can write. 
 
 We all regret that France, the United States 
 of America, and other countries continue to 
 maintain their high tariffs ; it is, we believe, a 
 misfortune to them and injurious to us ; but 
 we can only legislate for our own country and 
 not for them. If you thiuk that, not being able 
 to sell freely i we should mend ourselves by 
 giving up the power to buy freely, I must leave 
 you to that opinion, only expressing my wonder 
 at it. But you will perhaps say that we can 
 force other nations to reduce their tariffs if we 
 impose a tariff against them. You forget pro- 
 bably that we have tried this in past times, and 
 that it has wholly failed. Sir Robert Peel 
 taught this nearly forty years ago, and he 
 believed, as I believe, that the best defence we 
 can have against the evils of foreign tariffs is 
 to have no tariff of our own. 
 
 You speak of France. The French Senate is 
 in favour of more protection. The Chamber of 
 Deputies is disposed to Free Trade and a more 
 liberal policy. The Free Trade party in France 
 is more powerful than in past times, and it . is 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 259 
 
 not certain tliat tLe proposed treaty will be less 
 favourable to trade between the two countries. 
 As to America, how will you compel its Govern- 
 ment to reduce their tariff ? By placing duties 
 on American exports to England ? If so, on 
 what exports ? On cotton for the mills of 
 Lancashire, or on corn for the food of all our 
 people ? The American Protective Tariff makes 
 it difficult or impossible for Americans to 
 become great exporters of manufactures. If 
 you fight them at the Custom Houses, you can 
 only assail them by duties on cotton or on corn, 
 and this surely will not benefit Lancashire or 
 the West Riding. When the debt of the United 
 States is much reduced, when their revenue is 
 in excess of their wants, then their tariff will 
 be reformed and their import duties will be 
 reduced. 
 
 If you doubt what Free Trade has done for 
 England, go back to your histories, and read 
 what was the condition of our working men 
 and their families for the first forty years of 
 this century, when everything was supposed to 
 be protected, and compare it with what it is 
 now. 
 
 For some years past manufacturers and 
 farmers have suffered greatly, and workmen 
 have suffered much, but they have not seen 
 one- tenth of the part of the distress which 
 afflicted them during the forty years of the high 
 duties from 1800 to 1840. The country suffers 
 now, not from our purified tariff, and not wholly, 
 or in chief part, from foreign tariffs. It suffers 
 from want of sunshine — from the short harvests 
 
 s 2 
 
26o THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 of several years ; and till we have again good 
 harvests we must suffer and endure. Parlia- 
 ment cannot give sun and heat for our fields, 
 and it will be no compensation to re-impose 
 import duties and to deny us the right to pur- 
 chase freely what we need from foreign nations. 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. E. Rigg, Drighlington, near Leeds. 
 
 ON REOIPEOOITY. 
 
 A gentleman from Bradford, having written 
 to Mr. Bright on the question of Reciprocity 
 as it affected that town, received the following 
 reply : — 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, April 15, 1881. 
 
 SiE, — I cannot reply at length to letters like 
 yours. Only last week, I think, a letter from 
 me on the subject on which you have written 
 was published in your newspapers. I can only 
 refer to it. 
 
 The home trade is bad mainly or entirely 
 because our harvests have been bad for several 
 years. I believe the agricultural classes — 
 owners and occupiers of land in the three 
 kingdoms — have lost more than 150,000,000/. 
 sterling through the great deficiency of our 
 harvests. This great loss must inevitably and 
 seriously depress all our other industries. It 
 is not Bradford alone that has suffered, the 
 w^hole cotton trade of Lancashire has suffered 
 greatly, and much of all this is to be attributed 
 to the condition of our great farming interest, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 261 
 
 and this again to the unfavourable seasons of 
 several recent years. 
 
 The remedy will come with more sunshine 
 and better yield from the land ; without this it 
 cannot come. To imagine that your suffering 
 springs now from hostile tariffs is absurd, 
 because you have had great prosperity with the 
 same tariffs ; but to suppose your case will be 
 improved by refusing to buy what you want 
 from foreigners, to punish them for not buying 
 freely from you, seems to me an idea and a 
 scheme only worthy of the inmates of a lunatic 
 asylum. 
 
 To return to protectidn, under the name of 
 reciprocity, is to confess to the protectionists 
 abroad that we have been wrong and that they 
 are right, and protection will henceforth be the 
 justified policy of all nations. If protection is 
 needful and good, surely at this moment it is 
 needful for our farming class, and yet who 
 dares to propose another sliding-scale or a fixed 
 duty on the import of foreign corn ? Bradford 
 must be watchful and patient, to look out for 
 new markets or new products for her looms, 
 and to endure a temporary reverse, to be fol- 
 lowed, I trust, at no remote period, with a 
 revival of prosperity. Bradford has had a good 
 innings since 1860; she gained more than 
 other towns from Mr. Cobden*s treaty with 
 France. Great success and great expansion of 
 business are followed by depression, to be fol- 
 lowed, I hope and believe, by a return to a fair 
 measure of prosperity. But our recovery 
 depends more on the produce of our harvests 
 
262 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 than on foreign tariffs, or on the changes in the 
 fashion of dress to which you refer. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. W. G. Lord, 1, Norfolk Street, Bradford. 
 
 ON LIBERAL RULE. 
 
 Read at a Liberal meeting, held at New- 
 town, Montgomeryshire, on the 22nd of April, 
 
 188L 
 
 April, 1881. 
 
 Deae Mr. Hanbury Tracy, — If I were in 
 your neighbourhood, I should be glad to go 
 with you to meet the members of your working- 
 men's club at Newtown. I hope you may find 
 the club well sustained and prosperous. Wales 
 has done much for the Liberal cause, and 
 England and Scotland and I hope Ireland too 
 have reason to be grateful to the intelligent 
 constituencies of the principality. 
 
 When I speak of the Liberal cause, I mean 
 the cause which is represented by increasing 
 freedom at home, and by justice, honourable 
 dealing, and peace abroad. In the triumph 
 of this cause no portion of the people have 
 a greater interest than that which is most 
 directly connected with your club. I hope 
 your members will make themselves acquainted 
 with the history of our country during the last 
 two centuries, and especially since the accession 
 of George the Third. 
 
 In this last period of twenty years they may 
 trace the fruits of the two systems of Govern- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M,R 267, 
 
 ment, the Tory and tlie Liberal. The Liberal 
 Government has made some blunders, but their 
 policy and career have been marked by great 
 and wise concessions, and by many services to 
 the people. The possession of power by the 
 Liberal party since the passing of the Reform 
 Bill of 1832 has made a beneficent revolution 
 in the nation, and there is yet great work for 
 the party to do. 
 
 I hope your Welsh constituencies will attend 
 carefully to their registration of voters, and 
 that they will find themselves at the next 
 general election as powerful as they showed 
 themselves last year. 
 
 With every good wish for the friends you 
 are about to meet, 
 
 I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 To Hon. H. S. A. Hanbury Tracy, M.P. 
 
 ON THE FRENCH TREATY. 
 
 Written to the Secretary of the National 
 Trades' Defence League in reference to a reso- 
 lution passed at a meeting in Birmingham on 
 the 3rd of August, 1881, protesting against the 
 conclusion of any treaty of commerce with 
 France which did not materially reduce the high 
 duties hitherto levied by France upon British 
 manufactures, and which did not also provide 
 for England's withdrawal from such treaty 
 upon giving twelve months' notice to do so. 
 
 House of Commons, August 10, 1881. 
 
 Dear Sir, — The French treaty, as a matter 
 
2 64 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 of course, if negotiated at all, will be liable to 
 termination by either of the parties to it on 
 giving due notice bo the other party. As to 
 our having a treaty at all or not, I hope you 
 will allow the Government to do what is best 
 in the matter. We cannot expect to deal with 
 the French tariff as if it was our own. Each 
 Government has its own people and interest to 
 care for, and all that can be done is what the 
 two Governments can agree upon. We may 
 fail in doing anything good, but we shall do 
 our best, and may possibly succeed. I hope if 
 this negotiation fails, they who ask to have no 
 treaty except such a one as is impossible will 
 not turn round upon the Governments and 
 blame them for not accepting an arrangement 
 which might have been of great value to some 
 branches of our varied industry. I think you 
 may trust the Government to do what, under 
 the circumstances of the case, is best for the 
 country. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bhight. 
 
 THE IRISH LAl^D BILL OF 1881. 
 
 Written to the Secretary of the Kilrea 
 Tenant-Farmers' Association. 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, August 19, 1881. 
 
 Deae Sir, — I have just received a copy of 
 
 the resolutions passed by the tenant farmers 
 
 of the Kilrea district on the subject of the 
 
 Land Bill. I write to thank you and them for 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 265 
 
 your friendly expressions towards myself. I 
 believe tlie Bill to be a great and just measure, 
 and that it ought to give great satisfaction to 
 the Irish people. During Mr. Gladstone's ad- 
 ministration the great questions of the Irish 
 Church and Irish land have been, I hope, finally 
 disposed of. The education question is no 
 longer one of difiiculty or of heated conflict. 
 The Imperial Parliament has endeavoured to 
 be liberal and just, it remains now with your 
 people, by increased industry and by a regard 
 to public order, ta make Ireland not less 
 prosperous and not less tranquil than England 
 and Scotland now are. 
 
 With every good wish for you and your 
 country, 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 OlSr RECIPROCITY. 
 
 Mr. Thomas Barrow, of Kegworth, near 
 Derby, who was the first traveller under a 
 well-known carpet firm, under the Cobden 
 treaty in France^ wrote to Mr. Bright, in 
 September, 1881, stating his experience in 
 French trade — namely, that as soon as the 
 French adopted steam-power for their manu- 
 factures we should not be able to compete with 
 them, their labour being obtainable at such 
 a low rate. He therefore asked Mr. Bright 
 whether he did not consider in the case of 
 France that we should adopt a system of 
 reciprocity. 
 
266 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 Mr. Bright replied as follows :— 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, September 2, 1881. 
 
 Sir, — I do not know what you mean by a 
 system of reciprocity ; if you mean that we are 
 only to trade freely without duties at our ports 
 with nations who will do the same with us, 
 then I am against reciprocity as a stupid and 
 impossible proposition. 
 
 If you mean that we are to put on duties at 
 our ports with the notion that we shall compel 
 other nations to take off their duties, then I am 
 against it, from the conviction that such a plan 
 must fail, as it has done in all past time. For 
 thirty years before our Free-Trade times this 
 plan was made use of and offered to foreign 
 ports, and it entirely failed, as it would fail if 
 again offered. 
 
 If you begin to put on duties at our ports, 
 the protectionists of all other nations would 
 say we were adopting their policy and admit- 
 ting that our Free-Trade policy was unsound, 
 as we had repented and begun to adopt theirs. 
 
 The true course for England is to open 
 her ports as widely and completely as pos- 
 sible, whatsoever may be the tariffs of other 
 countries. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. T. Barrow, Keg worth, Derby. 
 
 ON FREE TRADE. 
 
 Written to a gentleman at Newport, Isle of 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 267 
 
 Wight, in reply to questions on the subject of 
 protective duties. 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, November 20, 1881. 
 Dear Sir, — If you keep a particular trade 
 employed at the cost of taxing persons engaged 
 in other trades, what is it but a svstem of 
 relief, or like feeding a dog with its own tail r 
 Our people are not turned out of work by 
 foreign imports. How do we employ and feed 
 ten millions increased population since the 
 Free Trade era — or since 1 840 ? They are far 
 better employed and paid and fed now than 
 they were forty years ago, when they were ten 
 millions less in number. The present state of 
 things is one of steady and general improve- 
 ment. Poor-rates are decreasing everywhere. 
 All these ideas are delusions and falsehoods. 
 
 Yours truly, 
 John Bright. 
 
 [Eead Mr. Medley's "Reciprocity Craze," published by 
 Cassell, Petter, and Gal pin, for facts,] 
 
 ON COMPLETING HIS SEVENTIETH 
 YEAR. 
 
 Written to the Chairman of the Manchester 
 Liberal Association, in reply to an address 
 presented by the Association on the occasion 
 of Mr. Bright's 70th birthday. 
 
 Eochdale, December 13, 1881. 
 Dear Me. Bmith, — I thank you for your kind 
 letter, with which you send me the address of 
 
268 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 the Manchester Liberal Association, presented 
 to me on the occasion of my birthday. I will 
 ask you to convey to your Committee and to 
 your members my warm thanks for the kind- 
 ness with which they have greeted me, and for 
 the good wishes they express for me. It is a 
 great consolation to me to know that I have 
 had, in my public career, the approval of so 
 many of my countrymen who are qualified to 
 form a just opinion on the great questions 
 which affect the interests of the State. I hope, 
 by our combined efforts, we have been able to 
 do some good and to increase the sum of 
 comfort and happiness among our people. To 
 have been permitted to partake with you in 
 these efforts, and in the labours of many years, 
 is a large compensation for the burden which 
 public life has laid upon me. 
 
 Believe me, yours very sincerely, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 John Alexander Beith, Esq., Manchester. 
 
 ON NATIONAL EXPENDITURE. 
 
 Written in reply to Mr. Colborne, a member 
 of the Monmouthshire Chamber of Agriculture, 
 on the subject of national expenditure. 
 
 February, 1882. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I must refer you to reports of 
 my speeches for what I have said on the sub- 
 ject of expenditure. Some are in newspapers, 
 perhaps, and some are in the published volumes 
 of my speeches. As to the complaints of 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 269 
 
 Chambers of Agriculture about public expen- 
 diture, I can only say that they are just 
 enough; but I would remind you and them 
 that every increase of expenditure during the 
 nearly forty years I have been in Parliament 
 has been supported' by the representatives of 
 the farmers. County members are the most 
 eager supporters of whatever extravagance our 
 administration has been guilty of. I shall be 
 very glad if now they take a turn, but I observe 
 them more willing to throw the burden on to 
 some other shoulders than to insist that the 
 burden shall be lessened. 
 
 Yours truly, 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON SLAVERY IN THE UNITED STATES. 
 
 Written to Mr. John Lobb, the editor of the 
 "Life and Times of Frederick Douglass," a 
 history of an American slave's experience, and 
 prefixed to the work, 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, 
 March 8, 1882. 
 
 Deae Sie, — I am glad to hear that you are 
 about to publish an English edition of the 
 " Life and Times of Frederick Douglass," in 
 his youth a slave in the State of Maryland, 
 now holding an honourable office in the district 
 of Columbia, in the United States of America. 
 I have read the book with great interest. It 
 shows what may be done and has been done 
 by a man born under the most adverse circum- 
 stances — done not for himself alone, but for 
 
2 70 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 liis race and for his country. It shows also 
 how a great nation persisting in a great crime 
 cannot escape the penalty inseparable from 
 crime. History has probably no more strik- 
 ing example of the manner in which an 
 offence of the highest guilt* may be followed by 
 the most terrible punishment than is to be 
 found in the events which make the history of 
 the United States from the year 1860 to the 
 year 1865. The book which you are about to 
 offer to English readers is one which will stimu- 
 late the individual to noble effort and to virtue, 
 whilst it will act as a lesson and a warning to 
 every nation whose policy is based upon in- 
 justice and wrong. 
 
 I hope it may find its way into many thou- 
 sands of English homes. 
 
 I am, with great respect, yours sincerely, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 To Mr. John Lobb. 
 
 ON THE SALVATION ARMY. 
 
 Written to Mrs. Booth in reference to the 
 opposition to which the Salvation Army was 
 then exposed. In the case alluded to in the 
 letter a sentence of one month's imprisonment 
 with hard labour had been passed at the petty 
 sessions at Whitchurch, on four members of the 
 Salvation Army for an assault on the police, 
 who attempted to prevent their forming a pro- 
 cession. The chairman admitted that the as- 
 sault was only a technical one, and on the case 
 being submitted to Lord Chief Justice Cole- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 2-]! 
 
 ridge, lie stated that *' liard labour was igno- 
 minious, and that the defendants might be 
 religious enthusiasts, but such sentences were 
 not to be tolerated for one moment." Sir W. 
 Harcourt said he agreed very much with both 
 of these opinions, and that he was happy to 
 think that the sentence was under review by 
 the Lord Chief Justice. 
 
 House of Commons, May 3, 1882. 
 
 Dear Madam, — I gave your letter to Sir W. 
 Harcourt. He had already given his opinion 
 in the House of Commons, which will be, to 
 some extent, satisfactory to you. I hope the 
 language of Lord Coleridge and the Home 
 Secretarv will have some effect on the foolish 
 and unjust magistrates, to whom, in some dis- 
 tricts, the administration of the law is unfor- 
 tunately committed. I suspect your good work 
 will not suffer materially from the ill-treatment 
 you are meeting with. The people who mob 
 you would, doubtless, have mobbed the Apos- 
 tles. Your faith and patience will prevail. 
 
 I am, with great respect and sympathy, yours 
 sincerely, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 To Mrs. Booth, 101, Queen Victoria Street, London. 
 
 ON THE WAR IN EGYPT. 
 
 In September, 1882, the Rev. Thomas Rippon, 
 of Warrington, in a letter to Mr. Bright, dis- 
 cussed the question of war in the abstract, 
 
272 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 holding tliat " peace at any price " was an un- 
 tenable position, and that the Egyptian war 
 seemed a righteous one from that stand-point. 
 He reminded Mr. Bright of the prevaiHng 
 opinion of many of his countrymen that his 
 was a policy of " peace at any price," without 
 reserve, and that it was that alone which led him 
 to give up ofl&ce. He also called his attention 
 to a letter which appeared in the previous week's 
 Sjpectator, in which the writer said " Mr. Bright 
 gave up oflSce and association with an admired 
 leader, solely because he believed the war to be 
 a departure from national morality, and there- 
 fore from the principles of the Liberal party ;" 
 together with the editor's note thereon, that 
 " Mr. Bright did not oppose the Egyptian war 
 in particular, but all wars." 
 
 Mr. Bright replied to the letter as follows : — 
 
 Cassencary, Creetown, N.B., 
 S.epteinb,er 25, 1882. 
 
 Deae Sir, — The Spectator and other sup- 
 porters of this war answer me by saying that I 
 oppose the war because I condemn all war. The 
 same thing was said during the Crimean war. 
 
 I have not opposed any war on the ground 
 that all war is unlawful and immoral. I have 
 never expressed such an opinion. I have dis- 
 cussed these questions of war, Chinese, Crimean, 
 Afghan, Zulu, Egyptian, on grounds common 
 to and admitted by all thoughtful men, and 
 have condemned them with arguments which I 
 believe have never been answered. 
 , I will not discuss the abstract question. I 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F, 273 
 
 shall be content when we reach the point at 
 which all Christian men will condemn war when 
 it is unnecessary, unjust, and leading to no 
 useful or good result. We are far from that 
 point now, but we make some way towards it. 
 
 But of this war I may say this, that it has^ 
 no better justification than other wars which 
 have gone before it, and that doubtless when 
 the blood is shed, and the cost paid, and the 
 results seen and weighed, we shall be generally 
 of that opinion. 
 
 Perhaps the bondholders, and those who 
 have made money by it, and those who have got 
 promotion and titles and pensions, will defend 
 it, but thoughtful and Christian men will con- 
 demn it. 
 
 I am, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Rev. Thomas Rippon, "Warrington. 
 
 ON THE RULES OF PROCEDURE. 
 
 Written in reply to a resolution passed by 
 the Birmingham Trades Council in favour of 
 the resolutions for the reform of the Procedure 
 of the House of Commons. These resolutions 
 were passed in the autumn session which was 
 held in 1882. 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, October 19, 1882. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I thank you for sending me a 
 copy of the resolution of your Trades Council 
 on the subject of the improvement of Parlia- 
 mentary Procedure. I hope the propositions 
 about to be submitted by the Government will 
 
 T 
 
2 74 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 be adopted by the House of Commons. In my 
 opinion the only fault to be found in them is 
 that they are not sufficiently stringent to be an 
 effectual remedy for the evil they are intended 
 to meet. They merit, however, the hearty 
 support of all who wish the House to be able to 
 do the work for which it is elected and for which 
 it exists. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON COMPLETING HIS SEVENTY- 
 FIRST YEAR. 
 
 On the IjSth of November, 1882, Mr. Bright 
 completed his seventy-first year, and on the 
 occasion the overlookers of the large manufac- 
 turing works at Rochdale, owned by Messrs. 
 John Bright and Brothers, sent the right hon. 
 gentleman an address of congratulation. The 
 following is a copy of Mr. Bright' s reply : — 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, 
 November 21, 1882. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Your letter, so unexpected, but 
 so welcome, I have received with much pleasure. 
 I am grateful to you for your good wishes, and 
 for the friendly feelings you express towards 
 me. May I ask you to tell my friends on whoso 
 behalf you have written that it is very pleasant 
 for me to know that you and they observe the 
 course I take in connection with public affairs, 
 and that my conduct has secured your approval. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 275 
 
 I thank you and them for the kind remembrance 
 in which you hold me. 
 
 I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Thomas Waller, Field House Mill, Eochdale. 
 
 ON AN INVITATION BEING SENT MR- 
 BRIGHT TO VISIT AMERICA. 
 
 At the beginning of 1883 Mr. Bright received 
 from Mr. Evarts a resolution unanimously 
 adopted by the Union League Club of New 
 York, inviting the right hon. gentleman to visit 
 the United States as the guest of the club, 
 which was to celebrate its twentieth anniversary 
 on the 6th of February in that year. Mr. 
 Evarts in his letter, after referring to Mr. 
 Bright' s support of the Northern cause during 
 the civil war, said : — " The Union League Club 
 has always counted among the important poli- 
 tical aids to the support of the authority of our 
 Government, under the stress through which it 
 passed, the firm, unflinching, and impregnable 
 attitude which you and your and our great 
 friend, Mr. Cobden, opposed to the great current 
 of commercial, social, and political interest and 
 opinion which, both in England and on the 
 Continent, set so strongly against the success 
 of the loyal power of the country in dealing 
 with so powerful a revolt. We have never 
 attempted to measure the extent of our obliga- 
 tions to you, nor to calculate the misfortune to 
 our cause had it missed the support of so great 
 a defender. 
 
 T 2 
 
2 76 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 " These sentiments of the Union League Club 
 are shared by the great body of the sober and 
 thinking people of this country, and the hospi- 
 tality which we proffer you will be but one form 
 of the general acclaim which your presence in 
 the United States will call forth .... In 
 asking you to be our guest from the time you 
 take the sea to make this desired visit through 
 the whole of your travel in our country, and 
 until you again reach your home, we can 
 promise you that every eye and every heart of 
 all our countrymen will greet you with its 
 blessing, and that, beyond this, our people will 
 encroach as little upon the quiet and freedom 
 which you may think suitable to your health 
 and enjoyment, during your stay with us, as 
 you may desire." 
 
 Mr. Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 Eochdale, January 16, 1883. 
 
 My dear Mr. Evarts, — I have received your 
 kind letter of the 16th of December, along with 
 a letter signed by yourself as President of the 
 Union League Club of New York, and on behalf 
 of the members of the club, inviting me to visit 
 the United States, and to be present on the 6th 
 of February next at the celebration of the 
 anniversary of the foundation of the club in the 
 year 1863. 
 
 The receipt of these letters and this invita- 
 tion has caused me a very mixed feeling. I am 
 pleased to think, and indeed to know, that I 
 have many friends in your country who remem- 
 ber with kind feelings towards me the part I 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 277 
 
 took in the discussions in England at the great 
 crisis in your history, when the unity of your 
 great Republic and your free Government 
 seemed for a time to be in peril. 
 
 But if I am glad to have so many friends 
 amongst you, I am grieved that the time has 
 never come when I could visit a country and a 
 people in whose greatness and welfare I have 
 always felt the strongest interest. And now, 
 when you send me the most friendly invitation, 
 the obstacles in my way are not to be overcome. 
 
 Your celebration is fixed for the 6th of 
 February. Besides the ordinary duties of a 
 member of Parliament, I have special engage- 
 ments for the spring — for March and May — 
 which I cannot escape from or postpone. It is 
 quite impossible, therefore, for me to accept 
 your invitation for the coming month, and I 
 cannot hope to take part in the interesting pro- 
 ceedings to which you have invited me. 
 
 But I must say something more. I never 
 liked the sea, and my once strong appetite for 
 travel has subsided, and I cannot but feel that 
 the friendly welcome promised me on your side 
 of the Atlantic would force me into a publicity 
 from which I shrink. 
 
 What can I say, then, in reply to letters so 
 complimentary, and yet, I cannot doubt, so 
 friendly and sincere ? That I am deeply grate- 
 ful to you and to your and my friends on whose 
 behalf you have written, and that I regret with 
 a feeling not less strong that I am not able to 
 accept the kind invitation you have sent me, 
 and the most kind welcome you have offered 
 
278 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 and promised me. I write with difficulty ; but 
 you will understand how hard it is to make a 
 fitting, when an unfavourable, reply to such 
 letters as you and your friends have addressed 
 to me. You will forgive me if I cannot come. 
 I can never forget your great kindness and the 
 honour you have conferred upon me. 
 
 Believe me always, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON THE OATHS QUESTION. 
 
 Eead at a meeting of the Hebden Bridge 
 Parliamentary Debating Society in February, 
 1883, in a debate on the question of permitting 
 members of Parliament to make an affirmation 
 instead of taking the oath. 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, February 14, 1883. 
 
 Dear Sib, — On the question of oaths, pro- 
 bably there is. nothing in the New Testament 
 more especially condemned and forbidden than 
 oaths. To those who do not care about the 
 New Testament this fact will be of no weight. 
 
 The practice of swearing to the truth of any- 
 thing makes two kinds of truth or truthfulness. 
 If oaths are of any avail, by so much as they 
 make truth more certain, by so much they 
 lessen the value of an ordinary statement, and 
 diminish the probability of its truth. 
 
 If ignorant persons are not sworn, they think 
 they may tell lies with impunity, and their lying 
 , is made to a large extent blameless in their 
 eyes. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 279 
 
 I tliink oaths and oath-taking have done 
 more than any other thing to impair and 
 destroy a regard for truth. If you wish to 
 see the question treated more at large, you will 
 find it in an admirable book, " Dymond's Essays 
 on Morality," which you may obtain from any 
 bookseller, or from Mr. Harris, 5, Bishopsgate 
 Street, London. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. W. Pickles, Royd Terrace, Hebden Bridge. 
 
 ON THE INCOME TAX. 
 
 Mr. Peter Lee, a Rochdale tradesman, wrote 
 a long letter to Mr. Bright in April, 1883, com- 
 plaining of the harsh operation of the income 
 tax on the middle classes, including tradesmen 
 and others engaged in commercial pursuits, 
 "who are expected to maintain a respectable 
 appearance out of incomes ranging from 100/. 
 to 200Z. a year." Mr. Lee submitted that there 
 should be always a disposition to reward merit, 
 whereas the income tax operated in the opposite 
 direction, '' grinding energy at every turn, and 
 claiming nothing from indolence." 
 
 Mr. Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 132, Piccadilly, April 6, 1883. 
 
 Deae Sir, — There are many cases like yours. 
 The income tax is very unjust ; but our foreign 
 policy, so stupid and so often wicked, and so 
 costly, makes it necessary. I preach against 
 the policy, and am much condemned by public 
 
28o THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 writers. What can I do more ? I agree with 
 much that you say, but I have no means of 
 helping you. I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Peter Lee, Church Stiles, Rochdale. 
 
 ON THE MARRIAGE LAWS. 
 
 Written in reply to the Rev. Alfred R. 
 Tucker, of Bristol, who wrote to ask an expla- 
 nation of Mr. Bright concerning a passage in 
 his speech at a meeting of the Liberation Society 
 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, on Wednesday, 
 May 2nd, 1883. The following is the passage 
 in question : — " A handful of ecclesiastics . . . 
 condemn thousands of families to unhappiness 
 during their lifetime, and condemn thousands 
 of children who are wholly guiltless, as I believe 
 their parents are guiltless-,^ ^ 
 
 Mr. Tucker asked that " for morality's sake " 
 Mr. Bright would give an explanation of the 
 words italicized. 
 
 Mr. Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, 
 May 7, 1883. 
 
 Sir, — I spoke of those who are married, but 
 whose marriage is by the existing law not legal 
 in this country. These marriages are legal in 
 Canada and in the Australian Colonies, and 
 hence a man may have a legal wife in the 
 Colonies and another legal wife in England. 
 He may bring his Canadian legal wife to Eng- 
 land, where, when she touches our shores, she 
 is not a legal wife, and where her children born 
 here are not legitimate. If you can justify 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 281 
 
 this, I will not argue with you. Excuse me if I 
 do not discuss the main question with you. It 
 is asserted, I beHeye truly, that the Queen is in 
 favour of the change of law. It is known that 
 the Prince of Wales is so. 
 
 In the Lords I learn there is a majority in 
 favour of the change ; last year the Bishops 
 prevented it. In the Commons a majority of 
 150 or more support the change. When it 
 becomes law your Church, Bishops and Clergy, 
 will have to support it, which I doubt not they 
 will do without much difficulty. 
 
 I only regret they do not see the light before 
 it is forced upon them. When I speak of a 
 handful of ecclesiastics I refer to the members 
 of Convocation who have been discussing this 
 question. 
 
 Pray excuse this hurried note. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 To Eev. Alfred E. Tucker, The Paragon, Clifton, Bristol. 
 
 ON THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA. 
 
 Written to Major Evans Bell, who was about 
 to proceed to the United States on a lecturing 
 tour. 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, August 25, 1883. 
 
 Dear Majob Bell, — I am always glad to 
 hear that Englishmen are going to the States, 
 and that Americans are coming here. The 
 more we know of each other the better for 
 both. I doubt if India is a subject which 
 Americans will find or think very interesting ; 
 but if you can make it so, they will learn some- 
 
282 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 thing on a great question, which, as it concerns 
 250,000,000 of the world's population, must 
 now and in future, for an intelligent people 
 like our American brethren, have a great and 
 growing interest. You are supposed to judge 
 somewhat harshly of our Indian Government. 
 In describing its course I do not doubt you 
 will give it credit where credit is due, and that 
 you will point out how much the people of 
 England are disposed, so far as they are con- 
 cerned, to govern wisely the vast population 
 conquered h^ their fathers. The task of the 
 wise government of so vast an empire may be an 
 impossible one — I often fear it is so — we may 
 fail in our efforts, but, whether we fail or suc- 
 ceed, let us do our best to compensate for the 
 wrong of the past and the present by conferring 
 on the Indian people whatever good it is in our 
 power to give them. Perhaps when the United 
 States are wise enough to abolish what they 
 call protection — that is, protection of a class or 
 classes at the expense of the nation — they may 
 find a market in India, from which now their 
 costly system shuts them out. I hope you 
 may have a pleasant voyage out and home, and 
 that your excursion to the States may be in 
 every way satisfactory to you. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight, 
 
 ON THE WOEK OF LUTHER. 
 
 Mr. S. Lloyd, of The Farm, Sparkbrook, 
 having compiled a small volume on the work of 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 283 
 
 Luther in the Reformation, as a remembrance 
 of Lutlier on the fourth centenary of his birth, 
 forwarded a copy to Mr. Bright, and received 
 the following letter in reply : — 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, September 3, 1883. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I have read your little book on 
 " Luther " with interest and with pleasure. 
 I hope it may have a wide circulation. Every 
 conflict does not need a Luther : our battles are 
 not so fierce, and the strength and passion of 
 the great reformer are scarcely called for in our 
 time. Our triumphs are not after battles with 
 " confused noise and garments rolled in blood ;" 
 they come of discussion and gradual change of 
 opinion, and not of great catastrophes — which 
 is a thing to be thankful for. I hope, though 
 we may not have Luthers, we may have teachers 
 whose voice or pen may reach all corners of the 
 land, and guide our people to a higher moral 
 standard. There is a growth — we may wish it 
 were more rapid — but must learn to have and to 
 exercise more patience in this as in other 
 things. 
 
 I thank you for sending me your little book, 
 and am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 THE FUTUEE OF lEELAND. 
 
 Written to Mr. Barry O'Brien in reference 
 to his work, *' Fifty Years of Concession to 
 Ireland," published in 1883. 
 
284 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, October 4, 1883. 
 
 Dear Sib, — The handsome volume jou have 
 sent me reached me last evening. I occupied 
 a portion of the evening in reading it. I am 
 sure I shall find much valuable matter in it, 
 and I wish it could be extensively read in 
 England and in Ireland. Ireland needs to be 
 informed as well and as much as England ; but 
 w^hile England is willing to learn, and is now 
 well disposed, a large portion of Ireland is not 
 willing to learn, and has put itself into the 
 hands of men whose purpose is that it shall 
 only learn what is hostile to England, and, as I 
 think, must be injurious to itself. 
 
 As to the future, I do not take so gloomy a 
 view as many writers do. I believe in just 
 measures, and in their effect, and in time and 
 patience, and I am ready to hope, and even to 
 believe, that within a reasonable period we 
 shall see a change for the better in Irish affairs. 
 If men will read your book of the " Fifty 
 Years " they will know more about Ireland 
 and may make more allowance for the present 
 unhappy state of the relations between her and 
 the more powerful island. I thank you for your 
 kindness in sending me your book. I hope it 
 will be extensively read and extensively useful. 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John BiiiGHT. 
 
 ON ELECTION '' FADS." 
 
 A member of Parliament, in an address 
 to his constituents, said that he desired to see 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 285 
 
 in connection with the County Franchise Bill, 
 a plan whereby a moderate proportion of 
 members of the House — say, 60 out of 600 — 
 should be chosen, not by the constituents, but 
 by the members already elected in the usual 
 way. Thus, every ten members of any party 
 could, as it were, appoint a member, the ob- 
 ject of this plan being to secure the admission 
 to the House of able men, who, through weak- 
 ness of voice or any other personal reason, 
 cannot make the customary appeal to a con- 
 stituency. This project was brought under the 
 notice of Mr. John Bright, who wrote as 
 follows : — 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, October 8, 1883. 
 
 SiE, — I can give you no favourable opinion 
 of the plan you refer to. It is wholly opposed 
 to the spirit and principles of our Constitution, 
 and offers no advantage to compensate for this. 
 As to admitting men into Parliament, whom 
 electors wilj not elect, or whose condition of 
 health or voice will not allow them to under- 
 take an appeal to a constituency — the propo- 
 sition seems to me not a little ludicrous. Men 
 feeble in health and men not able or willing to 
 go through the ordeal of an appeal to a con- 
 stituency, may take other means of serving the 
 public — the Parliamentary path is not their 
 path — and to open a new gate for those 
 incapable of making use of the ancient and con- 
 stitutional road, is a proposition not seriously to 
 be regarded. Parliament has already an abun- 
 dant supply of clever men — men who can both 
 
286 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 think and talk. We need no new plan of 
 admitting feeble folk — feeble in body and in 
 voice — and in the powers and qualities which 
 recommend men to the notice and confidence 
 of electors. I advise you to keep to the old 
 ways — for the " fads," minority clauses, and 
 new modes of making a Parliament, all tend to 
 mischief ; they show mistrust of the people, and 
 they are mainly intended to weaken the popular 
 voice. I am for none of these things, v 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON ELECTION " FADS." 
 
 MR. hare's scheme. 
 
 The remarks made by Mr. Bright in the 
 previous letter induced an inquiry as to 
 whether he included Mr. Hare's scheme in 
 his general condemnation of " ' fads,' minority 
 clauses, and new modes of making a Parlia- 
 ment." To this inquiry Mr. Bright replied as 
 follows : — 
 
 One Ash, Rochdale, October 16, 1883. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I think Mr. Hare's plan more of 
 a " fad " than any other yet submitted to the 
 public, and it has this disadvantage — that 
 scarcely any one can understand it. It aims at 
 making Parliament an exact photograph of 
 every phase of public opinion, and under ifc 
 there is no fancy or folly which might not, and 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 2S7 
 
 probably would not, have its representative in 
 the House. Parliament would be broken up 
 into busy cliques, led by the political lunatics 
 who would have entrance within its walls. My 
 advice is, keep to the old ways — they are the 
 safest, and the " wayfaring man, though a fool " 
 (in some sense) " shall not err therein." I have 
 known several or a few of Mr. Hare's sup- 
 porters ; but not one of them has seemed to 
 me to possess the common sense which is 
 as useful and necessary for legislation and 
 government as in the ordinary pursuits of life. 
 I am in favour of the Constitution which has 
 come down from our forefathers, with such 
 amendments as circumstances and our expe- 
 rience seem to warrant. I think they would 
 have looked on Mr. Hare's scheme with mingled 
 amazement and ridicule. You have asked my 
 opinion, and I have given it. I do not seek 
 the protection which its friends claim for the 
 patent constitution of Mr. Hare. 
 
 I am, very respectfully, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON PROTECTION IN YOUNG 
 COUNTRIES. 
 
 Written in reply to a correspondent who had 
 asked Mr. Bright' s opinion as to a policy of 
 protection in young countries. 
 
 Llandudno, N. Wales, November 30, 1883. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I- have but a short answer to 
 your letter of the 17th of October. 
 
288 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 If you impose duties on foreign manufactures, 
 you tax all who consume tliem. With this tax 
 you hope to induce your own neighbours to 
 begin to manufacture what they had hitherto 
 received from abroad. You succeed in this 
 object to some, and perhaps to a considerable, 
 extent. During this process you create and 
 build up a new industry, which, the larger it 
 becomes, becomes more exacting, and insists 
 on a continuance of j even on an increase of the 
 protecting duties under which it has been 
 created. The system soon becomes one which 
 taxes a multitude for the profit of a few, and the 
 few by combination soon become so powerful 
 that the multitude is more and more burdened, 
 and the evil and unjust system is confirmed. 
 Two results follow : If you have produce to 
 export, the demand for it is lessened, for if you 
 put obstacles in the way of your purchasing, 
 you put them also in the way of your selling, 
 and in the course of time your protected indus- 
 tries are in trouble, for they, forced into an 
 unnatural activity, produce more than you can 
 consume, your home market becomes glutted, 
 and you have no foreign market to relieve it. 
 
 A protected industry is confined to its own 
 market — its productions are necessarily so 
 costly that it cannot relieve itself by exportation, 
 for in foreign markets it cannot compete with 
 other non- protecting nations. If your Govern- 
 ment offered some definite sum of money to 
 establish a certain manufacture as an example 
 or encouragement to others, the evil would be 
 small, and could be measured, and no claim or 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 289 
 
 demand would be created for a general system 
 of protection, and the public might gain or 
 suffer only a certain and moderate loss in the 
 experiment. This might be done in a given 
 case, without harm, and without the departure 
 from any sound principle. 
 
 If I were one of your community, I should 
 steadfastly resist the introduction of any system 
 of tariff protection — it is evil in principle, and 
 an evil which tends to grow, and which in time, 
 by combination, defies the efforts of honest men 
 to abolish it. 
 
 I would trust to time and to individual effort 
 to open up new industries, and I should feel that 
 in doing so I was only doing what, in the end, 
 was most likely to do good to the community 
 in which I was living. Your colony, from all 
 I can learn of it, is more prosperous than 
 Victoria. You are on a safe basis. Free Trade, 
 or a low tariff, only for revenue, is the true 
 policy, and will last longest. Any departure 
 from it is evil, and tends at. once to breed an 
 interest hostile to the interest of the whole 
 community. The experience of this country 
 ought to convince all our colonies of the 
 wisdom of low tariff or no tariff ; but it does not, 
 for men are selfish and men are ignorant, and 
 the selfish act upon the ignorant and bewilder 
 them. 
 
 There is nothing in public affairs that tends 
 more to make men dishonest than the system 
 of protection. It was so in this country before 
 our Free Trade era ; it is so now in the United 
 States. 
 
290 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 There is no meanness to wliicli those who 
 gain by tariff obstructions to trade will not 
 stoop to continue a system by which they profit 
 at the expense of the consuming public. 
 
 The efforts of all honest men should be 
 directed to prevent the beginning of such a 
 mischief, and to destroy it where unhappily it 
 has been permitted to take root. 
 
 Your colonies should learn from us to shun 
 our many errors, and to follow us where, after 
 long and bitter experience, we have discovered 
 true principles and the right path. 
 
 Yours, &c., 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Frederick Jones, 
 235, Pitt Street, Sydriey, New South Wales. 
 
 ON VACCINATION. 
 
 A Leicester gentleman wrote to Mr. Bright, 
 asking his opinion as to the enforcing of the 
 Compulsory Vaccination Acts, the seizure of 
 goods and the imprisonment of persons for re- 
 fusing to have their children vaccinated, and as 
 to whether it was consistent with personal free- 
 dom that respectable men should be put in 
 prison on any such matter of conscience. A 
 case was also stated in which a workman in a 
 condition of distress was apprehended by the 
 police while his four children were at his knee 
 saying their prayers, and the correspondent 
 asked whether this was the sort of man for 
 whom the State ought to provide prisons. Mr. 
 Bright replied as follows : — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 291 
 
 December, 1883. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I fear I cannot help you in 
 your complaint against the Vaccination Laws. 
 I think compulsory vaccination doubtful, and 
 the repetition of penalties as now practised 
 monstrous. The repetition of penalties creates 
 or intensifies the agitation against the law, and 
 so long as they are inflicted I suspect we shall 
 see only a greater hatred of the law. 
 
 As to compulsory vaccination, I am of opinion 
 that if it had never been insisted on or enforced, 
 vaccination might have been as general as it 
 now is without the fierce opposition to it which 
 now prevails in many quarters. The facts ap- 
 pear to me to be in favour of vaccination, but 
 that it often fails of any good eifect, and some- 
 times causes much evil and even death, is ad- 
 mitted even by its warmest supporters. To me 
 it is doubtful if persuasion and example would 
 not have been more effective than compulsion, 
 but to inflict incessant penalties upon parents, 
 and to imprison them for refusing to subject 
 their children to an operation which is not un- 
 frequently injurious and is sometimes fatal, 
 seems to me a needless and monstrous violation 
 of the freedom of our homes and of the rights 
 of parents. 
 
 The instances of harshness and cruelty you 
 mention shock me greatly. After so much con- 
 test for mildness in our laws, are such things 
 still possible in our country ? 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 u 2 
 
292 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON THE FACTORY ACTS. 
 
 Written to a gentleman in the Fylde district, 
 wlio had called Mr. Bright' s attention to the 
 criticisms of a Tory newspaper with respect to 
 his opposition to factory legislation. 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, January 1, 1884. 
 Deae Sie, — I was opposed to all legislation 
 restricting the working of adults, men or 
 women. I was in favour of legislation restrict- 
 ing the labour and guarding the health of chil- 
 dren. I could not therefore support Bills which 
 directly interfered with and restricted the work- 
 ing hours of women, and which thus were in- 
 tended to limit the working hours of men. I 
 still hold the opinion that to limit by law the 
 time during which adults may work is unwise, 
 and in many cases oppressive. As to your 
 Tory newspaper, you may remind the writer 
 that I sought to give the workman two loaves 
 of bread, when his party wished to give him 
 only one. 
 
 I am, truly yours, 
 
 John Beight.. 
 
 ON WAR. 
 
 Read at the annual meeting of the Workmen's 
 Peace Association, held in London on the 13th 
 of February, 1884. 
 
 London, February 13, 1884. 
 Deae Sie, — I thank you for sending me your 
 map of our national expenditure for the last 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP, 293 
 
 fifty years. It affords a lamentable exhibition 
 of our folly as a nation, and it should be put up 
 in some prominent place in the dwelling of 
 every working man in the three kingdoms. In 
 war the working men find the main portion of 
 blood which is shed, and on them fall the 
 poverty and misery which are occasioned by 
 the increase of taxes and damage to industry. 
 Household suffrage in boroughs and counties 
 will provide means by which our people may 
 defend themselves against these enormous evils. 
 It will now rest not with a few, but with mul- 
 titudes, to say whether the future shall be as 
 the past, whether the blood and treasure of our 
 people shall continue to be shed and squandered 
 on distant shores in causes in which we have 
 no real interest. I hope your Workmen's Peace 
 Association may send your chart of expenditure 
 through the country. It can only do good in 
 every family in which its figures are examined 
 and understood. 
 
 Yours, &c., 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON THE LAND LAWS. 
 
 Written to Mr. Hope Hume, of Torquay. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, February 27, 1884. 
 
 Dear Sir, — The time is near when our land 
 laws will be revised, some of them abolished. 
 The law of primogeniture will vanish, and en- 
 tails and settlements will be got rid of, or will 
 be so far limited as to be deprived of their per- 
 
294 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 nicious influence on the public welfare. I be- 
 lieve tbat opinion has so far advanced on these 
 questions that Parliament will consent to 
 changes which a few years ago men thought 
 almost impossible. The ease with which the 
 Settled Estates Bill, brought in by Lord Cairns, 
 passed both Houses is a proof that opinion has 
 changed, and that landowners have been in- 
 structed by the adverse times through which 
 they have recently passed. I need not tell you 
 that I have no sympathy with some wild pro- 
 positions which have been brought before the 
 public. The path of justice and honesty in 
 regard to land and the owners of land is one 
 from which I would not depart, and I believe 
 all our people of every class have no real or 
 permanent interest in schemes of confiscation 
 which have recently been offered for public ac- 
 ceptance. When the measures of parliamentary 
 reform now contemplated have become law, I 
 think the changes which are required in our 
 land system will not be difficult to accomplish, 
 if undertaken in an honest spirit and on honest 
 principles. I am satisfied that in the main the 
 owners of the soil will profit by the change not 
 less than other classes of our population. Our 
 reforms hitherto have been good for the whole 
 nation. Acting on the same lines we shall meet 
 with a like result. Some may be timid, some 
 may doubt, but future years will prove the 
 wisdom of the changes we have suggested, and 
 which cannot now be long delayed. 
 
 I am, &c., 
 
 John Bright. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 295 
 
 ON AMERICA, PEACE, AND WAR. 
 
 Written to Augustin Jones, of the Friends' 
 Boarding School, Providence, in reply to a letter 
 announcing that a marble bust of Mr. Bright 
 was to be erected there. 
 
 London, March 10, 1884. 
 
 Dear Friend, — I regret that I have so long 
 delayed an answer to your most kind letter, 
 which reached me some weeks ago. It in- 
 formed me of the singular and great compliment 
 you were about to pay me by placing a mar^ble 
 bust of me in the lecture-hall of your noble 
 school. I was surprised to hear of the project ; 
 but I cannot but be much gratified at the 
 friendly feeling manifested to me by yourself 
 and the authorities connected with your institu- 
 tion. You say that I was a friend to your 
 country in the day of need. I did what I could 
 to prevent discord between the two English 
 nations, and to teach our people the nature of 
 the great issue which depended on the conflict 
 in which twenty years ago your people were 
 engaged. I lamented the conflict ; but I wished 
 that England should offer her sympathy on the 
 side of freedom to the slave, and in favour of 
 the perpetual union of your great Republic. I 
 look back on the part I took with unalloyed 
 satisfaction, and would withdraw no word I 
 uttered in connection with a contest on which 
 England and the civilized world looked with a 
 profound interest. 
 
296 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 The question of peace, to wliicli you refer, 
 claims the sympathy of all Christian nations. 
 On your continent we may hope your growing 
 millions may henceforth know nothing of war. 
 None can assail you ; and you are anxious to 
 abstain from mingling in the quarrels of other 
 nations. Europe, unhappily, is a great camp. 
 All its nations are armed, as if each expected 
 an invasion from its neighbour, unconscious, 
 apparently, that great armies tempt to war 
 the moment any cause of dispute arises. The 
 potentates and Governments of Europe, I doubt 
 not, dread war. They seek to guard themselves 
 against it by enormous armaments. 
 
 We, in England, are not free from blame; 
 but with us the love of peace is increasing, and 
 no Government can engage in war without risk- 
 ing, and even losing, the support of our people. 
 We are so involved with territory and popula- 
 tions over half the globe that difficulties are 
 almost constantly arising, and our danger of 
 war is greater than that of any other nations. 
 I am, however, confident that our feeling against 
 war is sensibly increasing, and I trust and be- 
 lieve the moral sense of our people will more 
 and more condemn it. 
 
 I have read with much interest the report of 
 your great school which you sent me. I hope 
 your efforts in behalf of a sound, liberal educa- 
 tion may prosper, and that your students, as 
 they enter and pass through the world, may 
 strengthen the moral sentiment which pervades 
 so large a portion of your population. I can 
 only wish you success in your great work, and 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 297 
 
 thank you and all connected with your insti- 
 tution for the kindness you have shown me. 
 
 England and your United States are two 
 nations, but I always like to regard them as 
 one people. On them the growth of all that is 
 good in the world greatly depends. 
 
 Believe me, your sincere and grateful friend, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON FAIR TRADE. 
 
 Mr. J. Gething, of Birmingham, having sent 
 Mr. Bright a copy of a resolution passed at a 
 Fair Trade conference held in Birmingham in 
 March, 1884, in favour of the appointment of 
 a Royal Commission or a Parliamentary Com- 
 mittee to consider the state of trade, received 
 the following reply : — - 
 
 April 1, 1884. 
 
 Dear Sie, — I have received the copy of the 
 Fair Trade resolution, and thank you for it. 
 I cannot undertake to urge upon the Govern- 
 ment or Parliament the inquiry you suggest, 
 although I am certain it would result in a com- 
 plete overthrow of your case. Your friends 
 greatly exaggerate what you call " the unsatis- 
 factory and unprofitable state of trade." I 
 have known trade on many occasions in a far 
 more "unsatisfactory and. unprofitable " state 
 than it is now, and I have seen a gradual 
 restoration of activity and prosperity, which I 
 do not doubt we shall again see. 
 
 As to the condition of agriculture, if a com- 
 
298 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 mission or committee could give us plenty of 
 sunshine and hot or warm summers, I should 
 gladly vote for it. For the produce of our 
 farms a high or a fair price is given except for 
 wheat. If wool is cheap, mutton is dear ; and 
 in this respect the farmer is more than com- 
 pensated. The inquiry you suggest could not 
 lessen injury caused by diseases which occa- 
 sionally and in some localities afflict our cattle. 
 What we want in agriculture is more capital on 
 the land, and more skill and enterprise among 
 those who rent and cultivate it. Parliament 
 has made the land and its owners its special 
 favourites for fifty years past, and can do no 
 more in that direction. The farmer cannot 
 now be helped by higher prices caused by the 
 restrictions on the import of foreign corn. If 
 produce and prices will not yield the accus- 
 tomed rents, then rents must be reduced. 
 Parliament can do nothing, and will not 
 attempt to do anything, to sustain rents. 
 
 As to industry generally, I believe the artisan 
 and working classes throughout the country 
 are at this moment better fed, and clothed, and 
 sheltered, than at any former period within 
 our knowledge or recollection. ' There is still 
 poverty and suffering, but it lessens in amount, 
 and the spread of education and the growth of 
 habits of temperance will, we may hope and 
 believe, diminish the suffering and add to the 
 comfort of our people. Your "Fair Trade" 
 notion is a delusion which comes from an 
 ignorance of the facts bearing on the industrial 
 condition, or from a want of power to reason 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 299 
 
 from them. To establish what you call " Fair 
 Trade " you propose to restrict our trade, to 
 enact that our people shall not buy in the 
 markets where to buy would be most profitable 
 for them. In some branches of business you 
 would restrict, in others you would not restrict, 
 and this you call " Fair Trade." I am surprised 
 at the want of sound reasoning in your dealings 
 with the question, and in your daring to give 
 the name of " Fair Trade " to the policy which 
 you are offering for the acceptance of your 
 countrymen. Rest assured that " freedom of 
 industry" is a far greater blessing than any 
 you can confer by parliamentary tinkering with 
 individual trades which you would subject to 
 your '' Fair Trade " theories. 
 
 As to the future, I do not doubt that if our 
 harvests are more favourable, we shall witness 
 a general improvement in the agricultural 
 department of industry, and this will aid the 
 restoration to greater activity of the various 
 manufactures on which so large a portion of 
 our people depend for their employment and 
 their means of living. 
 
 I have written you a long letter in return for 
 yours. I have not done so because I am likely to 
 convince you, but because of the earnestness 
 with which you have addressed me. You are, 
 as you say, my political opponent. In the 
 course I take on the question we have been 
 discussing I am not an opponent of your true 
 interests, but your friend. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
300 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 ON A LLANDUDNO PENSIONER. 
 
 Written to Mr. Thomas Williams, Llandudno, 
 in reply to a letter announcing the death of a 
 poor widow who was one of Mr. Bright' s pen- 
 sioners, and was always visited by him and his 
 family when staying at Llandudno, 
 
 132, Piccadilly, London, 
 April, 1884. 
 
 Deae Sir, — I send you cheque and stamps 
 for coals. And so the poor old woman is gone — 
 I doubt not, to a happier world. To visit her 
 was a lesson. Her cheerfulness and patience 
 were wonderful, and her faith seemed always to 
 sustain her. She was in bed for nineteen years, 
 and yet life appeared to have a pleasant side 
 even to her, with all her prolonged affliction. 
 I am much better, and wait only for change of 
 wind and weather. 
 
 Yours very truly, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 FREE TRADE AND DEPRESSED IN- 
 DUSTRIES. 
 
 In June, 1884, a gentleman interested in the 
 Nottingham lace trade wrote to Mr. Bright, 
 pointing out the injury likely to be done to that 
 important industry by the measure then before 
 the German Parliament — increasing the duties 
 on lace goods to such an extent as practically to 
 close the German market to British producers. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 301 
 
 whilst, at tlie same time, ISTottingliam manufac- 
 turers were exporting some of their machinery 
 to Germany, where it could be worked cheaper, 
 and whence the goods came back to injure the 
 home market for Nottingham produce. The 
 writer expressed doubts as to the value of the 
 Free Trade system, under which such results were 
 possible, and hinted that the right hon. gentle- 
 man should suggesta remedy, or use his influence 
 with the Government for the benefit of the lace 
 trade. Mr. Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, June 19, 1884. 
 
 Dear Sie, — I cannot give you any decided 
 answer to your letter, for I have no definite 
 statement of facts before me. 
 
 Free Trade intends that you should buy where 
 you like to buy, and sell where you can sell, and 
 that this should be and is the right of every 
 workman and trader. 
 
 If I understand your letter, your idea is that 
 your present customers in this country should 
 not be allowed to exercise this right ; they must 
 buy such goods as are made in Nottingham from 
 the manufacturers and workmen of Nottingham, 
 and not from German manufacturers or work- 
 men, although, and indeed because, these ofier 
 their goods at somewhat lower prices. I cannot 
 see the justice or reasonableness of this. The 
 right to buy freely is as sacred a right as the 
 right to sell freely, and the customer may 
 justly complain if he is shut out from a cheap 
 market and forced only to purchase in a dear 
 one. 
 
302 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 We export more manufactured goods tlian 
 any other country in the world. We have a 
 greater interest in freedom to buy and sell 
 than any other country, and I should strongly 
 object to any measure intended to tax all our 
 people with a view of sustaining any special 
 industry among them. If this were done for 
 one, why not for others, and for all ? And if 
 for some, or all, we should give the greatest 
 encouragement to foreign nations to combine 
 and make more strict and injurious their 
 exclusive policy. 
 
 I know little of the conditions of your trade. 
 It may suffer under a depression which has 
 visited many trades of late, and must wait for 
 the revival which will doubtless come. 
 
 The most depressed trades in England for 
 several years past are those connected with coal 
 and iron, and yet coal and iron are not imported 
 into this country in any quantities to affect 
 prices. The depression comes from causes 
 which Governments and Parliaments cannot 
 reach. 
 
 As to your own case, surely with as good 
 machinery and as much skill and as much in- 
 dustry as the Germans you can meet them in 
 your own or in any foreign market. 
 
 If you wish to compel me and others to give 
 you a higher price than the article is worth in 
 the world's market, what is it but something 
 like a " rate in aid " that you are asking, and 
 that all your countrymen should subscribe to 
 support the special industry of your town ? We 
 do not ask it for the cotton industry of Lanca- 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 303 
 
 shire, although we have our depression and 
 diflficulties. 
 
 I hope we shall see better days for all our 
 industries. All countries have suffered, and the 
 protected countries, I believe, have suffered 
 more than England, whose trade is free. 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 THE HOUSE OF LORDS. 
 
 Eead at a great reform demonstration at 
 Accrington on the 19th of July, 1884. The 
 meeting was held shortly after the rejection by 
 the House of Lords of the Bill for extending 
 household suffrage to the counties. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, July 18, 1884. 
 Dear Sir, — I am glad to hear of the arrange- 
 ments for your great meeting to-morrow. Ac- 
 crington and the surrounding district will not 
 fail in its duty at this crisis. The question is 
 not one of the Franchise Bill only — that Bill will 
 not be defeated, or long delayed. There has arisen 
 another and a greater question. Shall the House 
 of Lords subject to its will the Ministry, which re- 
 presents the Crown, and the House of Commons, 
 which represents the nation ? Shall the policy 
 of a great and free country be thwarted by men 
 sitting in their hereditary chamber, who are 
 there by no right of votes given them, and 
 through whom the voice of the millions of the 
 United Kingdom is not heard ? Their veto is 
 
304 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 a constant insult to the House of Commons, and 
 if the freedom of our people is not a pretence 
 and a sham, some limit must be placed upon a 
 power which is chiefly manifested in, or by, its 
 hostility to the true interests of the nation. A 
 parliament controlled by hereditary peers is no 
 better, perhaps it is worse, than a parliament 
 influenced by and controlled by a despostic 
 monarch. Ask your friends to consider this 
 question seriously. Let them join with their 
 countrymen in demanding a change which shall 
 free the House of Commons from fetters as 
 humiliating to it as they are injurious to the 
 country. 
 
 Believe me, sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. John P. Hartley, Accrington. 
 
 ON LORD SALISBURY'S MISREPRESEN- 
 TATION OF MR. BRIGHT'S VIEWS. 
 
 During the recess following the first session 
 of 1884, in which the House of Lords rejected 
 the Franchise Bill, the Marquis of Salisbury 
 accused Mr. Bright, by means of a mutilated 
 quotation from a speech delivered by the right 
 hon. gentleman in 1859, of having, in that year, 
 insisted on the union of Franchise with Redis- 
 tribution. Shortly afterwards, Mr. W. Lord, 
 of Manchester, published, through the National 
 Reform Union, a pamphlet entitled '' Mr. 
 Bright on Redistribution, being a Refutation 
 by Lord Salisbury himself of his misrepresen- 
 
f UNIVERSITY j 
 
 OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P, 305 
 
 tation of Mr. Bright," in whicli he completely 
 disposed of the charges of the Tory leader. 
 Mr. Bright, in acknowledging a copy of the 
 pamphlet, wrote as follows : — 
 
 Kelso, KB., October 9, 1884. 
 
 Deae Sir, — I thank you for the trouble you 
 have taken with the pamphlet, and for the 
 interest you have shown in defending me 
 against the monstrous charge made by Lord 
 Salisbury and his followers. I do not fear that 
 any Liberal in the country will accept Lord 
 Salisbury's word as more worthy of confidence 
 than mine. I suppose some one has sent him 
 the paragraph, and he has used it without 
 ascertaining whether the argument founded 
 upon it was just or not. There is no other man in 
 England who has so repeatedly and consistently 
 urged the dealing with Franchise first and with 
 the seats afterwards as I have. But the Tory 
 managers do not object to a good, and as they 
 think, a thoroughly useful lie, and so they have 
 placarded this in all the towns of England and 
 Scotland. It will not do much for them, but 
 your quotations from Lord Salisbury's and 
 from my speeches will make the matter clear to 
 all who read them. The Tory papers will avoid 
 the subject or will misrepresent the statement 
 you have made. 
 
 I thank you for your kindness in this matter, 
 and am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
3o6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 THE SUNDAY POSTAL DELIVERY. 
 
 Mr. Briglit, having received an invitation to 
 a conference proposed to be held with a view 
 to the closing of all post offices and to the non- 
 delivery of letters on Sundays, forwarded the 
 following reply to Mr. Aston, of the Sunday 
 Eest Association : — 
 
 One Ash, Eochdale, October 23, 1884. 
 
 Deae Sie, — I cannot attend your proposed 
 conference, or support the object for which it 
 is to be held. To close all our post offices on 
 Sundays would, in my view, be not only an 
 intolerable inconvenience, but a great evil. To 
 continue at least one delivery of letters in the 
 day seems to me needful for the public service, 
 and not unduly interfering with the labour and 
 service of the letter-carriers. 
 
 The post office is our great means, not only 
 of commercial biit of family communication, 
 and it is with reference to the "family" that 
 I am Inost strongly opposed to your views. 
 There are scores of thousands of young men 
 and women in this country who are away from 
 their homes and parents, engaged in cities and 
 towns in the various occupations by which they 
 live. To these Sunday is, to a large extent, a 
 day of rest. It is a day on which their 
 thoughts naturally turn to the homes they have 
 left. It is the day on which the letter from 
 the loving but absent father or mother is most 
 frequently received ; and it is the day on which 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 307 
 
 the absent son or daughter has the greatest 
 leisure to write to the home circle. 
 
 If your plan were adopted, how many thou- 
 sands of letters of wise and loving counsel 
 from parents to absent children would be 
 unwritten, or received under circumstances 
 less favourable for good than if received, and 
 read, and re-read during the quiet and leisure 
 of the Sunday ? In cases of sickness or of 
 death the closing of the post would often be 
 a grievous inconvenience and a cause of great 
 and prolonged distress. I have known two 
 instances of it in my own family ; and what 
 has happened in my case must have taken place 
 in many others. I think the closing of the 
 post in London on Sundays is a great inconve- 
 nience, and on the grounds to which I have 
 referred, as to its effects on family correspon- 
 dence, a great evil. But if the London system 
 were extended to the whole kingdom it would 
 cause an amount of confusion that would be 
 intolerable. If I am not mistaken, the House 
 of Comm.ons did once pass a resolution in 
 favour of your object, but was compelled to 
 rescind it. I have no fear that you can suc- 
 ceed. If you obtain a momentary success, it 
 must be followed by failure. 
 
 The one round of the postman in the day is 
 not a heavy burden — not heavier than that 
 borne by great numbers in almost every class 
 in life. It is a great public service, an honour- 
 able labour, and it must be compensated for as 
 other services are. There is not a word in the 
 New Testament leaning to your views, so far 
 
 X 2 
 
3o8 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 as they are influenced bj religious considera- 
 tions. The Sabbath was made for man, and 
 not man for the Sabbath, 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. T. H. Aston, 197, High Street, Birmingham. 
 
 ON INTEGRITY IN BUSINESS. 
 
 In answer to a question as to how a man can 
 succeed in business and yet be thoroughly a 
 Christian, addressed to him by the Secretary 
 of the Hackney branch of the Young Men's 
 Christian Association, at the instigation of the 
 members, Mr. Bright replied as follows : — 
 
 November, 1884. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I do not think I am specially 
 qualified or in any way entitled to give an 
 opinion upon the question with regard to which 
 you have written. My own experience does 
 not carry me further than other men. There 
 are men who profit by practices of meanness 
 and dishonesty in business, and I have heard 
 of trades in which an honest man is said to be 
 at a serious disadvantage in the competition 
 to which he is subjected. But, on the other 
 hand, I know many men who seem to me to 
 prosper, in part on account of their high 
 character for honour and justice, in their deal- 
 ings as shopkeepers, manufacturers, or mer- 
 chants. If a man is able to be strictly honest 
 in all his dealings, in the quality of his goods, 
 as well as in every business transaction, his 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 309 
 
 character undoubtedly serves him in some sort 
 as capital, because he gains the respect of those 
 from whom he buys and those to whom he 
 sells ; and I believe this will in many, perhaps 
 in most cases, balance or even exceed whatever 
 gains may be secured by mean or dishonest 
 practices to which some tradesmen have 
 recourse. That honesty is the best policy I 
 firmly believe, as it is also the most righteous, 
 and it will leave no stain upon the conscience. 
 There are trades offering more temptations to 
 dishonest practices than others, and parents 
 may wisely consider this when seeking employ- 
 ment for their sons; and sons may likewise 
 consider it when looking out for the business 
 of their lives, and seek that trade which offers 
 the least possible temptation. In my judgment 
 the value of a high character for strict honoiir 
 and honesty in business can hardly be esti- 
 mated too highly, and it will often stand for 
 more in the conscience, and even in the ledger, 
 than all that can be gained by shabby and 
 dishonest transactions. 
 
 Yours truly, 
 John Bright. 
 
 ON INDIAN GOVERNMENT. 
 
 Written on the receipt of a work which 
 had been sent to Mr. Bright by its Bengali 
 author : — 
 
 London, November, 1884. 
 
 Dear Sir, — You speak of my services to 
 your country. I wish I could have done more 
 
^10 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 for your vast population now connected and 
 subject to the rule of my country. It is to me 
 a great mystery that England should be in the 
 position she now is in relation to India. I 
 hope it may be within the ordering of Provi- 
 dence that ultimately good may arise from it. 
 I am convinced that this can only come from 
 the most just government which we are able to 
 confer upon your countless millions, and it will 
 always be a duty and a pleasure to me to help 
 forward any measure that may tend to the 
 well-being of your people, I think I perceive 
 an increased interest here in your welfare, and 
 a growing intelligence and influence among the 
 natives of India in anything that is calculated 
 to promote their wise and just government. 
 The principles which have distinguished the 
 administration of Lord Ripon seem to me to 
 be those which promise to be beneficial to you 
 and creditable to us. I hope every future 
 Governor- General may merit the confidence of 
 our Government at home and of the vast popu- 
 lation whose interests may be committed to his 
 charge. I thank you for the gift of your 
 volumes. I shall value them as you desire, 
 and as a proof that in the little I have been 
 able to do my small services have been appre- 
 ciated by those for whom my sympathy and 
 good intentions have been so strongly excited. 
 So far as I know how to do so, I would be as 
 much a friend of India as of England. 
 
 I am, yours, &c., 
 
 John Beight. . 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 311 
 
 ON THE RESULTS OF FREE TRADE IN 
 ENGLAND. 
 
 Addressed to Mr. Adam Wilde, of the Hack- 
 ney Liberal Association, during the election in 
 that borough consequent on the death of Mr. 
 Fawcett. Professor Stuart, who was the 
 Liberal candidate on the occasion, was subse- 
 quently returned by a large majority over his 
 opponent. 
 
 132, Piccadilly, W., November 17, 1884. 
 
 Dear Sir, — I observe that your Tory candi- 
 date and his friends are seeking support as 
 Fair Traders in opposition to Free Traders. 
 They complain that we are allowed by our 
 Government and our tariff, to buy freely all the 
 products of foreign countries, and that, owing 
 to some foreign tariffs, we cannot sell our own 
 products as freely as we wish to do. We can 
 fix the duties in our own tariff and on our 
 imports, but we cannot fix the duties in the 
 tariffs of foreign countries and on their im- 
 ports. All this is true enough and plain 
 enough, but what is not plain and not true is 
 the strange belief held by Fair Traders that 
 being injured by not being able to sell so freely 
 as we wish to do, owing to duties in foreign 
 tariffs, we should remedy the evil by giving up 
 the power to buy freely by putting duties on 
 our own tariff. 
 
 To sell freely would be a great advantage, 
 as to buy freely is a great advantage; but 
 neither to buy freely nor to sell freely, as the 
 Fair Traders recommend, would, in my view. 
 
312 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 enormously increase tlie injury to our trade 
 arising from the foreign tariffs vv^hich now 
 obstruct our foreign trade. 
 
 Let your workmen reflect on tlie change in 
 their condition which Free Trade has wrought 
 within the last forty years since the reform of 
 our tariff. The corn law was intended to keep 
 wheat at the price of 80s. the quarter ; it is now 
 under 40s. the quarter. The price of tea is now 
 less than the duty which was paid upon it in 
 former days. Sugar is not more than one- 
 third of its cost when a monopoly of East and 
 West India sugar existed- As to wages in 
 Lancashire and Yorkshire, the weekly income 
 of thousands of workers in factories is nearly 
 if not quite double that paid before the time 
 when Free Trade was established. The wages 
 of domestic servants in the county from which 
 I come are, in most cases, doubled since that 
 time. A working brick-setter told me lately 
 that his wages are now 7s. 6c?. per day; for- 
 merly he worked at the rate of 4s. per day. 
 Some weeks ago I asked an eminent upholsterer 
 in a great town in Scotland what had been the 
 change in wages in his trade. He said that 
 thirty to forty years ago he paid a cabinet- 
 maker 12s. per week ; he now pays him 28s. 
 per week. If you inquire as to the wages of 
 farm-labourers, you will find them doubled, or 
 nearly doubled, in some counties, and generally 
 over the whole country advanced more than 
 50 per cent., or one-half, whilst the price of 
 food and the hours of labour have diminished. 
 It may be said that milk and butter and meat 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON, JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 313 
 
 are dear, wliicli is true; .but these are dear 
 because our people, by thousands of families, 
 eat meat who formerly rarely tasted it, and 
 because our imports of these articles are not 
 sufficient to keep prices at a more moderate 
 rate. The Fair Traders tell you that trade in 
 some branches is depressed, which is true, 
 though their statements are greatly exaggerated. 
 We have had a great depression in agriculture, 
 caused mainly by several seasons of bad har- 
 vests, and some of our traders have suffered 
 much from a too rapid extension in prosperous 
 years. I have known the depression in trade 
 to be much greater than it is now, and the 
 sufferings of traders and workmen during our 
 time of Protection, previous to 1842, when the 
 reform of our tariff began, were beyond all 
 comparison greater than they are now. In 
 foreign countries where high tariffs ex ist, say 
 in Eussia, in France, and in the United States, 
 the disturbance and depression of manufactur- 
 ing industries are far greater at this moment 
 than with us. Their tariffs make it impossible 
 for them to have a larger foreign trade ; we 
 have a wide field for our exports, which they 
 cannot enter. We have an open market for 
 the most part in South America, in China, in 
 Japan, and with a population of more than 
 200,000,000 iu our Indian Empire, and in our 
 colonies, with the exception of Canada, and the 
 province of Victoria in Australia. The field 
 for our manufacturing industry is far wider 
 than that for any other manufacturing nation 
 in the world, and I cannot doubt that we shall 
 
314 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 gradually rise from the existing depression, and 
 shall reap even greater gain from our policy of 
 Free Trade in tlie future tlian we have reaped 
 in the past. In 1846, when the cruel Corn 
 Law was repealed, we did not convert our 
 landowners and farmers, we only vanquished 
 them. Even^now there remains among them a 
 longing for Protection ; they cling still to the 
 ancient heresy, and, believing in the ignorance 
 or forgetfulness of our working men, they raise 
 their old cry at every election of members of 
 Parliament. If I have any influence with your 
 own or any electors, let me assure them that 
 for centuries past there has been no change of 
 our national policy which has conferred and 
 will confer so great good on our industrious 
 people as that policy of Free Trade which the 
 two greatest Ministers of our time, Sir Robert 
 Peel and Mr. Gladstone., have fixed, I cannot 
 doubt for ever, on the statute book of our 
 country. 
 
 The recent contest in the United States has 
 overthrown the party of Protection and mono- 
 poly. It may prove a great blessing to the 
 English nation on the American continent. 
 When England and America shall have em- 
 braced the policy of free industry the whole 
 fabric of monopoly the world over will totter 
 to its fall. 
 
 I am, very respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Adam Wilde, The Morley Hall, Hackney, E. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M,P. 315 
 
 ON LAND AND ITS EENT. 
 
 Some extracts of a paper on agricultural de- 
 pression, which was read by Mr. Lywood at 
 the Warminster meeting of the South Wilts 
 Chamber of Agriculture in December, 1884, 
 haying been sent to Mr. Bright, he wrote the 
 following reply : — 
 
 Eochdale, December 19, 1884. 
 
 Deah Sie, — I know nothing of Mr. Lywood, 
 but, judging from the extract of his speech, his 
 mind, I fear, cannot be of a very clear or 
 logical order. I do not know if he quotes me 
 accurately, but I assume that he does so. 
 Surely if the losses of the land in 1879-80 
 were as great as my authority estimated them 
 to be, and if the harvests have been unfavour- 
 able for so many years, as farmers tell me is 
 the case, we can hardly expect all this mischief 
 to be repaired by the occurrence of one good 
 harvest, such as that of the present year. 
 
 The present year is remarkable in this — the 
 yield of wheat in. almost every country has 
 been good. In America the price of wheat 
 must be lower than with us. Everywhere 
 there is a surplus seeking a market, and a por- 
 tion of that surplus comes to us, hence the un- 
 usually low price of wheat. Why wheat is cheap 
 everybody knows ; even Mr. Lywood knows, and 
 yet he would " ask the Government to take 
 immediate steps to find out.*' The Govern- 
 ment knows, the Parliaraent knows, why wheat 
 is cheap, and we all know that wholly or par- 
 tially to shut out foreign wheat would imme- 
 
3i6 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 diately stir the markets and raise the prices ; 
 how much, would depend on the amount of the 
 duty, and the height of the barrier raised 
 against the import of foreign wheat. 
 
 What Mr. Lywood wants is that Parliament 
 should create this barrier, and thus raise the 
 price of wheat in the markets and the price of 
 bread in the home of every English family, and 
 this to give prosperity to the farmer, and, 
 through him, to the general trade of the 
 country. To do this, or to attempt to do it, 
 would be as reasonable as to expect to improve 
 trade by greatly raising the poor-rate to enable 
 paupers to become better customers of our 
 manufacturers and tradesmen. On this system 
 farmers are to be restored to prosperity by the 
 levying of a " rate in aid " on all the consumers 
 of bread throughout the country. 
 
 May I suggest to Mr. Lywood that his 
 remedy would at once tend to give steadiness 
 to rents, and would raise the letting value of 
 farms, and that all this would come from the 
 tax levied on the tables and the bread of the 
 millions of our population; whether it would 
 be of permanent service to tenants may be 
 more than doubtful. May I suggest, further, 
 to Mr. Lywoodj that if the present or future 
 price of wheat will not yield the present rents 
 of wheat-growing land, would it not be better 
 to adjust the rent to the quality and produce 
 of the soil rather than to attempt to tax all the 
 bread-consumers of the kingdom to sustain 
 rents which the land will not yield ? If land 
 is not worth rent, it should be, and will be, 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 317 
 
 rent-free. If land is paying rent which it will 
 not yield, then the question is one between 
 the tenant and the owner, and the taxpayer 
 cannot be called upon to make up the difference 
 between them. So long as rent is charged for 
 a farm the tenant can only look to the owner 
 for redress if rent is excessive. 
 
 Mr. Lywood says the depression in agri- 
 culture is greater now than when I referred to 
 its great losses. Bad harvests in successive 
 years cause increasing distress, as capital is 
 wasted and tenants are less able to meet the 
 di£B.culties which assail them. But this is 
 found only with the occupants of wheat-grow- 
 ing soils; in other departments of farming 
 there is no special distress or complaint. 
 There are districts where rents are not only 
 not reduced, but within two years from this 
 time have been raised, and where farms 
 are eagerly sought after by tenants. The 
 present price of wheat is not the permanent 
 price. When wheat was 80s. the quarter, or 
 more, farmers accepted the situation, even 
 though people were starving. Now the price 
 is very low; but flactuations are inevitable, 
 and probably a change for the better, from 
 a farmer's point of view, is not far off. Mr. 
 Lywood asks for an inquiry. Has he never 
 heard of inquiries in former years ? During 
 the Protection period there were frequent 
 inquiries. We had dismal stories from tenant- 
 farmers, as dismal as we have now, but Parlia- 
 ment could discover no remedy. We had a 
 great Commission which reported only three 
 
3i8 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 years ago, but it offered no remedy to the 
 farmer in whose behalf it was appointed. 
 
 What the land wants is sunshine such as it 
 has had during this year; it wants, further, 
 tenants of energy and intelligence and capital, 
 and it should be held on rational conditions, and 
 at rents which are fair and just, depending on 
 the quality of the soil and the nature and value 
 of its produce. It does not want, and cannot 
 have, a " rate in aid" raised on the tables and 
 the bread of the laborious millions of our 
 people. I have written you a long letter, but 
 the question you put to me is one of much 
 interest. 
 
 I am, very respectfully, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 Mr. George Heap, the hon. treasurer of the 
 National Industrial Association having written 
 to Mr. Bright to ask for an explanation of the 
 sentence, " If land is not worth rent, it should 
 be, and will be, rent free," contained in the 
 foregoing letter, Mr. Bright replied as fol- 
 lows : — 
 
 Eochdale, December 23, 1884. 
 
 Deae Sir, — Surely what I have written is 
 clear enough. If land will not produce any- 
 thing that will afford a rent, no one will take it 
 on the condition of paying rent for it. There 
 are millions of acres in the United Kingdom 
 that pay no agricultural rent. I do not say 
 this is the condition of wheat-growing land in 
 England, but surely rent must be determined 
 by the nature of the soil and its capacity to 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 319 
 
 produce wliat the markets require. If it be a 
 question wlietlier rent shall fall, or shall in 
 some cases cease to be paid, or whether the 
 food of our people shall be limited and raised 
 in price by the action of law and by the impo- 
 sition of a tax, there can be only one answer 
 to the question. In this county there are 
 many mills — probably some scores of mills — 
 which are closed owing to the competition of 
 modern mills of better construction. It is 
 certain that many of them will not work again ; 
 but the owners of them do not ask for a contri- 
 bution from the purchasers of our cotton manu- 
 factures, or for a tax collected by the Govern- 
 ment, to enable them to reopen their mills 
 and to work them to a profit. How does the 
 profit or rent of a mill differ from the rent or 
 profit of a farm ? If the friends of the farmers 
 would tell them that capital and intelligence 
 and industry are necessary for their trade, and 
 that if these fail there is no other resource than 
 a sufficient fall of rent, they would give them 
 the only counsel that can be of use to them. 
 If, as I doubt not is the casein many instances, 
 the farmers' capital is much wasted in your 
 county, it shows that they have paid more rent 
 than the land was worth ; but it does not show 
 that a higher price of food should be brought 
 about by law to enable them to recover the 
 excess which they have paid to the owners of 
 their farms. If men suffer, if farmers now 
 suffer, we may all feel much sympathy with and 
 for them; but we cannot depart from sound 
 principles of legislation, and levy a general 
 
320 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 contribution to restore them to a condition of 
 prosperity. They must be dealt with as mill- 
 owners or renters of mills are dealt with. They 
 must adjust their relations with their landlords, 
 and not ask Parliament to tax the whole people 
 for their benefit. 
 
 I am, respectfully yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. George Heap. 
 
 ON A CONSERVATIVE CANDIDATE'S 
 SPEECH. 
 
 In December, 1884, Mr. William Robertson, 
 President of the Ayr Liberal Club, drew Mr. 
 Bright' s attention to a charge preferred against 
 him by Mr. Somervell, Conservative candidate 
 for Glasgow, who, in addressing the Bothwell 
 Conservative Association, alluded to the con- 
 nection of Mr. Bright with the Corn Law 
 agitation, and said Mr. Bright was enabled to 
 put a considerable quantity of size into his 
 goods, but he did not reduce their price for all 
 that. Those goods were sent to India and 
 Africa among the coloured races there, who 
 were unjustly talked about as belonging to the 
 " great unwashed." They, however, objected 
 to size, and washed their clothing until it almost 
 disappeared altogether. So much, added Mr. 
 Somervell, for Mr. Bright's philanthropy. He 
 had done his best to ruin the British farmer, 
 and he had also done his best to wheedle the 
 very niggers who practised habits of cleanliness. 
 In reply to Mr. Robertson's communication, 
 Mr. Bright wrote as follows : — 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 321 
 
 Rochdale, December 27, 1884. 
 
 Dear Sir, — The speech of Mr. Somervell is 
 not worth notice, except to say that it is remark- 
 able that a man capable of such a speech can 
 be accepted as a candidate bj any class or 
 portion of the Scotch people. The obser- 
 vations to which you refer me are an example 
 of the exhibition of ignorance and falsehood 
 which are only met with in the lowest ranks of 
 the Tory party. I do not think any audience 
 of Liberals in any part of England or Scotland 
 could be found to applaud language such as 
 Mr. Somervell seems to delight in. To indulge 
 in it is a proof of the low opinion he must have 
 had of those who listened to him, but perhaps 
 he gave them the best which he had. More 
 than that it would be unreasonable to expect 
 from him. What must a Scotch constituency 
 be to which Mr. Somervell can appeal with any 
 hope of success? 
 
 I thank you for your note, and am. 
 
 Truly yours, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
 Mr. Robertson, Ayr. 
 
 This letter produced the following rejoinder 
 from Mr. Somervell : — 
 
 Sorn Castle, Maucbline, Ayrshire, 
 December 30, 1884. 
 
 Sir, — My attention has been drawn to a 
 letter that has been published, dated the 27th 
 of December, and bearing your signature, in 
 which, referring to a speech of mine, you state 
 
322 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 it is an ** exliibition of ip^norance and false- 
 hood.*' I have to request that you will inform 
 me to what speech you refer, and also state on 
 what observations you base your assertion, and 
 your grounds for so doing. 
 
 In the meantime I maintain the accuracy of 
 every public statement I have made. 
 
 I pass by the remainder of your letter with 
 the contempt it deserves, but with this single 
 observation, that I challenge you to point to 
 any public utterance of mine that at all re- 
 sembles your letter, either in its low tone, or 
 the coarseness of its personal abuse. 
 
 I remain, yours faithfully, 
 
 James Somekvell. 
 
 The Right Hon. John Bright, M.P. 
 
 To this Mr. Bright wrote in reply as 
 follows : — 
 
 Rochdale, December 31, 1884. 
 
 Sir, — I enclose the paragraph which is pub- 
 lished as a portion of your speech, and which 
 caused me to write the letter of which you 
 complain. You assume that the part I took in 
 the Anti-Corn-Law movement was prompted 
 by the fact that the size which is necessary in 
 the weaving of cotton goods would be made 
 more cheap, and that self-interest was my 
 ruling motive. In this you wished to convey 
 to your audience an impression which is 
 tufcirely false. You then say that I did not 
 reduce the price of my goods tor all that. Are 
 you not igi.orant if you do not know that the 
 competition among manufacturers will give to 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 323 
 
 tlie consumer whatever advantage is gained by 
 cheapening the mode or course of manufacture ? 
 You speak of those goods sent to India and 
 Africa, countries to which I have not been in 
 the habit of shipping cotton goods. Manu- 
 facturers, as you ought to know, make the 
 goods which their customers order, and are 
 not responsible for the countries to which they 
 are sent. You say I have done my best to ruin 
 the British farmer — that is, with the purpose 
 to ruin him — which you cannot know to be true, 
 and which I think you know to be false. What 
 you say about " unclothing the very nigger " 
 is so very silly that I will not comment upon 
 it. If you say that the extract which I enclose 
 is no part of your speech, I shall express my 
 regret at having said anything upon it ; but if 
 the extract is a fair representation of what you 
 said, I must adhere to the terms of my letter, 
 although it may not be pleasant reading for 
 you. I shall be glad if you will publish your 
 letter of yesterday and this reply. 
 
 I am, respectfully, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 ON THE LIBERAL PARTY IN RELA- 
 TION TO AGRICULTURAL LA- 
 BOURERS. 
 
 In December, 1884, Mr. T. S. Townsend 
 asked Mr. Bright if he would write a short 
 paper or letter which, being distributed, migtit 
 ue usetui m giving some political education to 
 the newly- enfranchised electors in South War- 
 
 1 2 
 
324 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 wicksliire. Mr. Bright in reply wrote as 
 
 follows : — 
 
 Rochdale, December 29, 1884. 
 
 Dear Mr. Townsend, — You suggest that I 
 should write something that may be of use to 
 the new voters under the Franchise Bill which 
 has just become law. If I were speaking to 
 your new voters, and especially if to those who 
 are farm labourers, I should say something like 
 that I am about to write. 
 
 I should tell them that there is a great differ- 
 ence between the two parties which will ask for 
 their votes in the spring of 1886 — a difference 
 which they may see in all things during the last 
 fifty years. The Eeform Bill of 1832 was car- 
 ried by the Liberal party against the violent 
 opposition of the Tories. It was the first step, 
 in our time, towards a better representation of 
 the people in Parliament. In the year 1867, 
 now seventeen years since, the suffrage was 
 first given to working-men, when household 
 suffrage was granted in our cities and towns. 
 /This was gained by the agitation promoted by 
 ! the Liberal party in the country, and was 
 J pressed upon the Tory Government during the 
 ^ discussions in the House of Commons in the 
 session of 1867. 
 
 The Liberal party in the country and in Par- 
 liament has advocated household suffrage for 
 the counties for several years, during which the 
 Tories have constantly opposed it. This year 
 the Bill giving household suffrage in the coun- 
 ties has become law, notwithstanding all the 
 efforts of the Tories to obstruct it. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.F. 325 
 
 The Liberal party gave to all voters the pro- 
 tection of the ballot, which the Tory party 
 strongly opposed. Every voter is now able to 
 vote as he wishes. No landlord, or farmer, or 
 employer of any kind can know how any 
 vote is given — and now the poorest man is as 
 safe in giving his vote as the richest. This is 
 a great safeguard for the voter. The arrange- 
 ment of seats under the Bill now before Parlia- 
 ment is the work of the Liberal party. The 
 Tory party when in office did not propose it, 
 and it is only under a Government of Liberals 
 that so great and wise a measure could have 
 been passed into law. 
 
 Political freedom therefore, and a real repre- 
 sentation of the people, rich and poor, the 
 country owes to the Liberal party. But we 
 owe much more to the Liberal party. 
 
 We owe to it the repeal of the cruel Corn 
 Law, and the removal of the hindrances to 
 trade, caused by monstrous taxes on almost 
 everything brought from foreign countries. 
 The Corn Law, by shutting out foreign corn, 
 was intended to keep the price of wheat at, or 
 near, eighty shillings the quarter; its natural 
 price without Corn Law is probably about forty 
 shillings the quarter. 
 
 Bread is, and will be, about half the price at 
 which the Corn Law intended it to be in all 
 years when English harvests were not good. 
 
 A great minister. Sir Robert Peel, repealed 
 the Corn Law. . The agitation of the Anti- 
 Corn-Law League, the Irish famine in 1846, 
 and the help and votes of the Liberals in Par- 
 
336 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 liament, witli the support of a portion of the 
 Tories, gave him power to repeal this wicked 
 and cruel law. Some of the Tories are now 
 proposing to restore it, and again to make the 
 labourers' bread dearer, so that farmers may be 
 able to pay rents which they say are too high 
 unless the law is put in force to raise the 
 market price of wheat, and the baker's price of 
 bread I The Tory party and country gentle- 
 men were very angry with Sir Eobert Peel 
 because he would not maintain the Corn Law. 
 His party deserted him, and drove him from 
 office and from power because he preferred the 
 interests of the nation, and the comforts of the 
 labouring classes to dear bread and high rents 
 for the landowners. 
 
 When the Corn Law was gone, other bad 
 things went with it. The Liberal Government 
 which came in after Sir Robert Peel destroyed 
 the monopoly in sugar. Other great changes 
 have been made, chiefly by Mr. Gladstone, sup- 
 ported always by the Liberals. The new voters 
 who are not young will remember the price of 
 bread in former days ; they will know that 
 sugar is about one-third of the price it once 
 was, and that they now can buy three pounds 
 for the price they formerly paid for one pound ; 
 and they know that tea costs less now than the 
 tax alone which was imposed upon it before the 
 Free Traders began the reform in our tariff and 
 the repeal of duties on imports from foreign 
 countries. And during these years there has 
 been a general and large rise in the wages of 
 working-men and labourers in all parts of the 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, M.P. 327 
 
 country. Farm labourers' wages have risen 
 one-half or more, and in some counties they 
 have nearly doubled since the days of Protec- 
 tion and the Corn Law. 
 
 But the Liberal party has done more than 
 give the mass of our people a real representa- 
 tion and a real power in Parliament. It haa 
 done more than give them freedom for their 
 industry. It has given them the means to un- 
 derstand what Parliament is doing, and what 
 it ought to do, for it has given them the vast 
 advantage of a free Press, and to their children 
 the not less vast advantage of cheap and good 
 schools. Now almost every labourer can have 
 an admirable newspaper weekly for a penny, or 
 every day one somewhat smaller in size, but not 
 less admirable in quality, for a halfpenny ! News- 
 papers, not so large and not so good as these, 
 cost sevenpence when the Liberal party began 
 to deal with this question. The taxes on paper 
 and on the printed newspaper strangled tho 
 Press, and the tax on advertisements was as 
 great when a gardener sought a situation and 
 employment as when a rich man advertised a 
 mansion or an estate- 
 All this is gone, — these scandals and cruel- 
 ties of the past are gone. The Liberals spoke 
 and worked ; the Tory Opposition, step by step, 
 was overcome, and one after another these great 
 evils vanished, and no longer disgrace Enghsh 
 legislation. 
 
 And what of the cheap and good schools ? 
 The child of the labourer may gain an educa- 
 tion that will give him as good a prospect, as 
 
328 THE PUBLIC LETTERS 
 
 regards labour and trade, as tlie child of a 
 richer man has. He will grow up with a sense 
 of self-respect; he will see before him a path 
 along which he may find independence and 
 comfort. The present gain of this is great ; 
 the future gain is beyond all we can estimate. 
 
 And what of the future ? What will house- 
 hold suffrage in counties and the new arrange- 
 ment of seats do for the new voters, and espe- 
 cially for the farm labourers ? If the new 
 voters know their interests, and if the Liberals 
 are returned in great power to the new Parlia- 
 ment, two things will have a chance of being 
 done. The land laws will.^_refprmed, and 
 much of them reformed out of existence. In 
 past times and now our land laws have been 
 framed to protect the great estates of great 
 families. Great estates lead to great farms, 
 and great farms lead to the result that it is 
 almost impossible for farm labourers to become 
 farmers, and thus the path of the intelligent 
 and hard-working labourer to an improved posi- 
 tion and condition for himself and his family 
 is barred and blocked. The holding of great 
 estates under entails and settlements, and often 
 heavily mortgaged and burdened, makes it 
 impossible for them to be well cultivated, and 
 thus the demand for labour is lessened, and a 
 better rate of wages is prevented. This whole 
 system of land laws must be broken down, and 
 the new and great reform will do little if it 
 does not get rid, as far as possible, of the mis- 
 chiefs of the past. 
 
OF THE RIGHT HON. JOHN BRIGHT, MP. 329 
 
 The Game Laws, too, will come under revi- 
 sion. Parliament may accept the principle 
 that the creatures which live on and from the 
 land are the property, if there be any property 
 in them, of the farmer, at whose cost, and by 
 whose labour, the farm is cultivated. When 
 this principle is admitted in our law, then what 
 is called " preservation of game " may cease ; 
 murderous conflicts on game preserves may be 
 no longer known, and labourers may not have 
 before them an almost constant and irresistible 
 temptation to become poachers and breakers 
 of the law. If the new voters will help the 
 Liberal party, the Liberal landowners, the 
 Liberal farmers, the Liberal shopkeepers and 
 tradesmen, in the towns and villages of the 
 counties and county divisions, we may see much 
 good done by a new Parliament. 
 
 If what I have written shall give information 
 or useful counsel, I shall be glad. I have for 
 more than forty years endeavoured to press 
 forward in the country and in Parliament the 
 changes to which I have referred. They have 
 all, so far as they have been effected, in my 
 view, been of great service to the country. 
 The period of reform is not yet ended ; it will 
 rest, in no small degree, on the good sense of 
 the new constituency, combined with what is 
 intelligent and just in the old body of electors, 
 whether, as on two past occasions, in 1832 and 
 in 1867, a large measure of electoral reform 
 shall be followed by great measures of improve- 
 ment in the legislation of our country. Per- 
 
330 THE PUBLIC LETTERS, ^-c, 
 
 liaps I have written at too great length in reply 
 to your letter — if so you will forgive me. The 
 subject is too grave and too great to be treated 
 in a paragraph. 
 
 I am, very truly yours, 
 
 John Beight. 
 
 T. S. Townsend, Esq., 68, Queen's Gate, London, S.W. 
 
ADDENDUM. 
 
 ADDRESS TO THE WORKING MEN OF 
 ROCHDALE. 
 
 The following address was issued by Mr. 
 Bright in August, 1842. The country was 
 Buffering at that time from a keen and wide- 
 spread distress consequent upon the action 
 of the duty upon foreign corn, which not 
 only raised the price of food, but hampered 
 and restricted trade, so that shopkeepers 
 were impoverished, and thousands of workmen 
 were thrown out of employment, and they and 
 their families driven into the ranks of pau- 
 perism, while even those who were still employed 
 were obliged to work as a rule for the merest 
 pittance. The description of the state of the 
 country given in a letter addressed by a Com- 
 mittee of the Anti-Corn-Law League to every 
 Member of Parliament in June of that year 
 recalls in its startling revelations the famous 
 speech of Sheridan concerning the condition of 
 France immediately before the revolution, when 
 he said that *'the manufacturer was without 
 employ ; trade was languishing ; famine clung 
 upon the poor ; despair upon all.** 
 
332 ADDENDUM. 
 
 "The great bulk of the people," it was asserted in the 
 letter, "the customers of each other, and of all the other 
 classes, are becoming too poor to purchase, and thus they 
 cease to consume, and profits are destroyed. Confidence no 
 longer exists ; trade is everywhere paralyzed ; wages are 
 rapidly declining ; workmen are being discharged ; poor's- 
 rates are fast increasing in the agricultural as well as manu- 
 facturing districts ; private charity has subscribed nobly, but 
 yields to the overwhelming pressure ; peaceable men are 
 made savage and desperate ; the loyal and obedient are 
 becoming discontented, disaffected, and revengeful ; and 
 society in many parts of the country seems to be on the 
 very verge of dissolution." 
 
 In this condition of things a feeling akin to 
 despair spread throughout the country when it 
 was seen that Parhament, despite the forcible 
 and eloquent and repeated appeals of the advo- 
 cates of the League, refused to give its consent 
 to the free admission of foreign corn into 
 English ports, and the starving workmen now 
 turned away from the peaceful and constitu- 
 tional movement inaugurated by the League, 
 to follow leaders of a different stamp. " It was 
 represented," says Mr. Archibald Prentice in 
 his History of the League, " that a great com- 
 mercial convulsion, which should compel em- 
 ployers to join the ranks of the employed, would 
 render the demand for the Charter irresistible ; 
 and that the means of obtaining that, through 
 reform of the representative system, would also 
 be the means of gaining a great advance of 
 wages. The plan was, that every worker 
 should cease to work ; one absurd enough at 
 any time, but especially absurd afc a period 
 when employers had so little work to give." 
 
 Having adopted this plan the workmen acted 
 
ADDENDUM, 333 
 
 upon it witTi remarkable promptitude and deci- 
 sion. On the morning of the 8th of August 23,000 
 hands turned out of the mills of Ashton-under- 
 Lyne, Dukinfield, and Stalybridge; 9150 from 
 the mills of Hyde followed their example the 
 same morning, and in the afternoon the greater 
 part of the operatives in Oldham took a similar 
 course. The next day several thousand opera- 
 tives proceeded from Ashton to Manchester, 
 and demanded at various mills that the hands 
 should turn out, which was instantly done, the 
 masters making no objections. The movement 
 spread, and rioting occurred in different parts 
 of the country, but it did not last long, for, 
 becoming sensible of the futility of the course 
 they were pursuing, the operatives gradually 
 returned to their work, and by the beginning 
 of September the disorder had subsided. An 
 address issued by Sir Benjamin Heywood to 
 the working men of Manchester was instru- 
 mental in persuading them to resume work, 
 and Mr. Bright' s address to the men of 
 Rochdale " was," says Mr. Prentice, " greatly 
 influential in inducing them to think deliberately 
 upon the course they were pursuing." Its 
 influence was not limited to Rochdale, for it 
 was copied into the newspapers, and must have 
 been extensively read throughout Lancashire. 
 
 Mr. Bright was only thirty years old when 
 he wrote this address, yet its style diifers little, 
 if at all, from that of his latest letters. It 
 contains an array of telling facts and truths 
 driven home with sledge-hammer blows, and 
 its statements are characterized by a fearless 
 
334 ADDENDUM, 
 
 candour, and by a plainness of speecli which 
 allows no doubt whatever as to the meaning 
 intended to be conveyed by them. The matter 
 of the address is such as might have been 
 produced by a mature and experienced thinker ; 
 its predictions have been verified, and the views 
 it enunciates will bear the strictest criticism 
 that can be applied to them, although more 
 than forty years have elapsed since they were 
 written. Masterly in its style, and accurate in 
 its conclusions, this piece of composition demon- 
 strates upon what a rock of sound economic 
 theory the young politician was established, 
 and with what a fund of practical wisdom he 
 was equipped, when he began the career 
 which has been distinguished by so splendid a 
 success. 
 
 The following is the address :-^ 
 
 TO THE WOKKING MEN OP HOCHDALE. 
 
 A deep sympathy with you in your present 
 circumstances induces me to address you. 
 Listen and reflect, even though you may not 
 approve. You are suffering — you have long 
 Buffered. Your wages have for many years 
 declined, and your position has gradually and 
 steadily become worse. Your suiferings have 
 naturally produced discontent, and you have 
 turned eagerly to almost any scheme which 
 gave hope of relief. 
 
 Your fellow-workmen in Ashton and Oldham 
 turned out for an advance of wages ; they in- 
 
ADDENDUM, 335 
 
 vaded your town, and compelled you to turn 
 out. Some of you, doubtless, were willing, but 
 many of yoa were reluctant to join them. They 
 urged you to treat the men ot Bacup and Tod- 
 morden as they had treated you. They told you 
 that you had no courage, and that you would be 
 unworthy the good opinion of your fellow-work- 
 men if you refused to act towards others as they 
 had acted towards you. You became an invading] 
 force. You visited the peaceful villages of 
 Bacup and Todmorden, and compelled your 
 fellow-workmen to cease their labour. You 
 were regardless of the sufferings you were 
 bringing on their wives and children ; you 
 relentlessly, and contrary to every principle of 
 justice and freedom, deprived them of breadj_ 
 You have had many meetings to deliberate on 
 your position ai:d prospects. An advance of 
 wages to the rate paid in 1840 and ten hours 
 per day were the demands you were urged to 
 make. But when the turning-out in this dis- 
 trict was completed, and you had become 
 evicted, these demands were abandoned, and 
 you were urged to refuse to work until the 
 
 charter became law. 
 
 Many of you know full well that neither Act 
 of Parliament nor act of a multitude can 
 keep up wages. You know that trade has 
 long been bad, and with a bad trade wages 
 cannot rise. If you are resolved to compel an 
 advance of wages, you cannot compel manu- 
 facturers to give you employment. /"TCrade 
 must yield a profit, or it will noi loug be carried 
 on ; and an advance of wages now would 
 
336 ADDENDUM. 
 
 destroy profit. ") You have a strong case now in 
 the condition'bf the colliers and calico-printers. 
 The wages of the colliers are not so low j>s 
 those in many other trades, but they suffer 
 because they are only employed two or three 
 days per week. The wages of calico-printers 
 have only been reduced once during twenty or 
 thirty years, and yet they are now earning as 
 little as any class of workmen, having not more 
 than two or three days' work per week. If 
 they combined to double the rate of wages, 
 they would gain nothing, unless they could 
 secure increased regular employment. Your 
 attempt to raise wages cannot succeed. Such 
 attempts have always failed in the end; and 
 yours must fail. 
 
 To diminish the hours of labour at this time 
 is equally impossible ; it is, in effect, a rise of 
 wages, and must also fail. You can have no 
 rise of wages without a greater demand for 
 labour ; and you cannot dictate what hours you 
 will work until workmen are scarce. 
 
 Your speakers and self -constituted leaders 
 urge you to give up the question of wages, and 
 stand upon the Charter. Against the obtaining 
 the charter the laws of nature offer no impedi- 
 ment, as they do against a forcible advance of 
 wages ; but to obtain the charter now is just 
 as impossible as to raise wages by force. 
 
 The aristocracy are powerful and determined; 
 and, unhappily, the middle classes are not yet 
 intelligent enough to see the safety of extending 
 political power to the whole people. The 
 working classes can never gain it of themselves. 
 
ADDENDUM, 337 
 
 Physical force you wisely repudiate. It is im- 
 moral, and you have no arms, and little organi- 
 zation. Moral force can only succeed through 
 the electors, and these are not yet convinced. 
 The principles of the charter will one day be 
 established ; but years may pass over, months 
 mu8i pass over before that day arrives. You 
 cannot stand idle till it comes. Your only 
 means of living are from the produce of your 
 own labour. tJnhappily, you have wives and 
 children, and all of you have the cravings of 
 hunger, and you must live, and, in order to 
 live, you must work. 
 
 Your speakers talk loudly. They tell you of 
 your numbers and your power, and they pro- 
 mise marvellous results if you will hut he firm. 
 They deceive you ; perhaps they are themselves 
 deceived. Some of them contrive to live on 
 this deception, and some are content with the 
 glory of their leadership. They flatter you» 
 grossly, and they as grossly calumniate your 
 employers. They pretend to be working out'^ 
 your political freedom; they know that thatl 
 freedom can only be obtained through the elec- 
 toral body and the middle classes, and yet they 
 incessantly abuse the parties whom it is your 
 interest to conciliate and convince.^ For four 
 years past they have held before your eyes an 
 object at present unattainable, and they have 
 urged you to pursue it ; they have laboured 
 iiicessantly to prevent you from following any 
 practical object. They have vilified the sub- 
 stance and extolled the shadow. They have 
 striven continually to exasperate you against. 
 
 z 
 
338 ADDENDUM, 
 
 those who alone will or can aid you to overturn 
 the usurpations of the aristocracy. They have 
 succeeded in creating suspicion and dissension, 
 and upon that dissension many of them have 
 lived. They have done their utmost to per- 
 petuate your seven or eight shillings per week, 
 and by their labours in that cause iliey have 
 enjoyed an income of three or four times that 
 amount. 
 
 My fellow- townsmen, you have been in a 
 fever during this week. Your conduct, unop- 
 posed as you have been, has been peaceable 
 and such as my intimate knowledge of you led 
 me to expect from you. We are all liable to 
 err ; you have committed an error, but it is not 
 a fatal one — it may be retrieved. I believe you 
 to be intelligent men, or I would not address 
 you. As intelligent men you cannot remain 
 out ; you cannot permanently raise wages by 
 force ; you cannot get the charter now. What 
 are you to do then ? Return to your employ- 
 M ENT. It is more noble to confess your error than 
 to persist in it, and the giving up of an error 
 brings you nearer the truth. When you resume 
 your labour, do not give up the hope of political 
 improvement — that would be even more to be 
 deplored than your present movement. Cherish 
 it still — a brighter day will come — and you and 
 your children will yet enjoy it. Your first step 
 to entire freedom must be commercial freedom 
 • — freedom of industry. We must put an end 
 to the partial famine which is destroying trade, 
 the demand for your labour, your wages, your 
 comforts, and your independence. The aris- 
 
ADDENDUM, 339 
 
 tocracy regard the Anti-Corn-Law League as 
 their greatest enemy. That which is tlie 
 greatest enemy of the remorseless aristocracy 
 of Britain must almost of necessity be your 
 firmest friend. Every man who tells you to 
 support the Corn Law is your enemy — every 
 man who hastens, by a single hour, the abo- 
 lition of the Corn Law, shortens by so much 
 the duration of your sufferings. Whilst that 
 inhuman law exists your wages must decline. 
 When it is abolished, and not till then, they 
 will rise. 
 
 If every employer and workman in the king- 
 dom were to swear on his bended knees that 
 wages should not fall, they would assuredly fall 
 if the Corn Law continues. No power on earth 
 can maintain your wages at their present rate 
 if the Corn Law be not repealed. You may 
 doubt this now, but consider the past, I beseech 
 you — what the past tells you the future will 
 confirm. You may not thank me for thus 
 addressing you, but, nevertheless, I am your 
 friend. Your own class does not include a man 
 more sincerely anxious than I am to obtain 
 for you both industrial and political freedom. 
 You have found me on all occasions, if a feeble, 
 yet an honest and zealous defender ; and I trust 
 in this, time will work no change in me. My 
 heart sympathizes deeply in your sufferings. 
 I believe 1 know whence they mainly sprijg, 
 and would gladly relieve them. I would 
 willingly become poor if that would make you 
 comfortable and happy. 
 
 I now conclude. 1 ask only the exercise of 
 z 2 
 
340 ADDENDUM. 
 
 your reason. If possible lay aside prejudices, 
 and you will decide wisely. 
 
 To such of you as have been employed at 
 the mills with which I am connected, I may 
 add that, as soon as you are disposed to resume 
 work, the doors shall be open- to you. I invite 
 you to come, and you shall be treated as, I trust, 
 you have ever been — as I would ever wish you 
 to treat me. 
 
 I am, with all sincerity, your friend, 
 
 John Bright. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 A. 
 
 Aberdeen, Lord, iocessantly attacked by Tory Opposition, 
 243. 
 
 Accrington, Liberal party in, 212. 
 
 Address, to electors of Manchester, 39 ; to electors of Birmiug- 
 ham, 45; to working men of Bochdale, 331. 
 
 Agriculture, what is wanted in, 298; future of, will be brighter 
 with more favourable harvests, 299 ; Parliamentary in- 
 quiries into the condition of, 317. 
 
 America, war of independence in, 27 ; Mr. Bright invited to, 98, 
 275; desirability for a moderate tariff in, 230; Protection 
 would be dead in, but for the civil war, 235 ; how compel 
 its Government to reduce their tariffs, 259; Mr. Bright's 
 conduct with reference to civil war in, 295. 
 
 American Jubilee Singers, 165. 
 
 Animals, kindness to, 2u3. 
 
 Aristocracy, monarchs, and landowners, 249. 
 
 Armaments, reduction of, desirable, 194. 
 
 Army, Salvation, 270. 
 
 Atrocities, Bulgarian, 190. 
 
 B. 
 
 Ballot, 54, 135, 137 ; given by Liberal party, 325. 
 
 ]3azaar, Mr, Bright asked to subscribe to, 46. 
 
 Beaconsfield Government, and the Eastern Question, 190; sug- 
 gestion that it should decapitate itself, 193; the foreign 
 policy of, 210; charged with constant deception, 210; 
 charged with attempting to suppress expression of opinion, 
 211 ; no friend to freedom, 211 ; the foreign policy of, 213, 
 225; its defeat, 246; worst Government we have had for 
 more than fifty years, 246. 
 
 Beaconsfield, Lord, admits that his Government is not sup 
 ported by the nation, 192. 
 
342 INDEX, 
 
 Bible, the, in Board Sclaools, 244. 
 
 Birmingham, Mr. Bright elected member for, 44; address to 
 electors of, 45 ; the unemployed in, 61 ; the representation 
 of, 62, 150 ; Conservative Working Men's Mutual Improve- 
 ment Association, 156. 
 
 Board Schools, reading the Bible in, 244. 
 
 Bradford, bad trade in, 261. 
 
 Bright, Mr., his representation of Manchester, 36; health of, 
 87 ; loss of seat for Mancnester, 39 ; address to electors of 
 Manchester, 39 ; conduct of, with respect to Russian war, 
 40 ; his opponents at Manchester, 41 ; elected member for 
 Birmingham, 44; asked to subscribe to a bazaar, 46; 
 seconds Mr. Milner Gibson's amendment to proposed 
 second reading of Conspiracy Bill, 60 ; his representation 
 of Birmingham, 63 ; his Reform Bill, 69 ; his proposed 
 extension of the franchise, 71 ; his proposal as to length of 
 residence for voters, 72 ; proposes lodger franchise, 73 ; 
 proposes ballot, 73 ; prevented from introducing his Bill, 
 74 ; receives resolution from Chamber of Commence of the 
 State of New York, 88; invited to go to America, 98; 
 receives vote of thanks from Committee of National Asso- 
 ciation of Irelan'l, 105; receives invitation to a banquet in 
 Dublin, 115; writes to Mr. Garth respecting libels, 117; 
 Mr. Garth's reply, 121 ; replies to Mr. Garth, 125 ; proposes 
 Parliamentary Commission empowered to buy large estiites 
 in Ireland, 139; becomes President of Board of Trade, 147 ; 
 letter-writing a burden, 158; treatment by the press in 
 reference to the Crimean war, 190; Sir Charles Gavan 
 Duffy ascribes Protectionist sentiments to, 200 ; writes to 
 Bishop of Peterborough, 2()4 ; declines to frame a Bill on 
 the subject of the drink traffic, 218 ; bis. work on behalf of 
 farmers in connection with the Game Laws, 239 ; elected 
 Lord Rector of Glasgow University, 248 ; his reply to 
 Lord Beaconsfield respecting monarchy and statesmen, 
 249; correspondence with Earl of Carnarvon, 250; on 
 completing his seventieth year, 267 ; his reasons for oppos- 
 ing war, 272; on completing his seventy-first year, 274; 
 again invited to America, 275; dislike to the sea, 277 ; 
 his conduct with reference to the civil war in America, 
 295 ; his advocacy for sepa:-ation of franchise and redistri- 
 bution, 305 ; instances in his family of inconvenience of 
 Sunday closing of post-offices, 307 ; correspondence with 
 Mr. Somervell, 321. 
 
 Bulgarian atrocities, 190. 
 
 Burials Bill, Mr. Bright's speecb on^ 203. 
 
 Business, integrity in, 308* 
 
INDEX. 343 
 
 C. 
 
 Cabinet, English, feebleness of, 32. 
 
 Canada, United States aud, 97. 
 
 Canadian policy, 236. 
 
 Candidates, working-men, 179. 
 
 Canvassing at elections, 176. 
 
 Carnarvon, Earl of, and Mr. Bright, 250. 
 
 Catholic population of Ireland, 6. 
 
 Cattle trade, foreign, 186. 
 
 Chambers of Commerce and political questions, 206. 
 
 Church, Irish, 5 ; funds of, 10, 13. 
 
 Circular, the London, 49. 
 
 Civil Service, 170. _ 
 
 Civil war in America, Protection in America would be dead 
 
 but for, 235; Mr. Bright's conduct with reference to, 
 
 295. 
 Clarendon, Lord, his description of his policy with respect to 
 
 Crimean war, 31. 
 Clergy, Tory, 251. 
 Cobden, Mr., 4. 
 Colonies, the, waste lands in, 64; and a Protective policy, 
 
 199. 
 Commercial Treaty between France and England, effect of, 
 
 217. 
 Consecrated ground, 203. 
 Conservative candidate's speech, 320. 
 Conspiracy Bill, the, 57, 59. 
 Conspiracy of Liberal members, 108. 
 Constituencies, three-cornered, 134, 145, 247. 
 Corn, tariff on, would tend to give steadiness to rents, 316. 
 Corn Law, repeal of, did not convert landowners and farmers, 
 
 314 ; repeal of, due to Liberal party, 325. 
 Country, condition of, in 1858, 61; in 1842, 332. 
 County members, the obstructive party, 246 ; support extra- 
 vagant expenditure, 269. 
 Coventry and Free Trade, 155. 
 Crimean war, application of Vattel's principles to, 26 ; who 
 
 has gained by it, ^^6 ; its results, 190 ; letter on, 242. 
 Currency, the, 68. 
 
 D. 
 
 Depression in trade, in 1879, and its causes, 231 ; and cheap 
 
 food, 232. 
 Derby Government, and Eeform, 130. 
 Derby, Lord (the late), his Eeform Bill, 69. 
 
344 INDEX, 
 
 Derby, Lord (the present), his unanswerable speech on foreign 
 policy, 214. 
 
 Disraeli Government, and the publicans, 189. 
 
 Disraeli, Mr., and Reform, 108 ; his opposition to the three- 
 cornered constituencies, 134. 
 
 Distress, in England, under Free Trade and under Protection, 
 227, 259 ; in the United States, 227; in England in 1842, 332. 
 
 Distribution of Seats Bill of 1 866, 110. 
 
 Duffy, Sir Charles Gavan, and Free Trade, 199. 
 
 E. 
 
 Eastern Question, the, 18P, 191. 
 
 Egypt, war in, 271 ; no better justification than other wars, 273. 
 
 Election fads, 284, 286. 
 
 Elections, multiplicity of, an evil, 163 ; canvassing at, 176. 
 
 Emigration, its necessity and causes, 63 ; Government aid to, 
 64, 67. 
 
 Employers, their right to combine, 80 ; liabilities of, 225. 
 
 Endowments, religious, objection to, 17. 
 
 England, committed to war with Russia, 31 ; policy of, towards 
 Turkey, 191 ; and Russia, 195 ; the condition of, under Free 
 Trade, 227 ; and United States, trade between, 245 ; de- 
 pendence of, on foreign food supply, 256 ; distress in, under 
 Free Trade and under Protection, 259 ; love of peace in- 
 creasing in, 296 ; and United States, one^people, 297; dis- 
 tress in, in 1842, 332. 
 
 English middle class, 85. 
 
 English people and Irish wrongs, 143. 
 
 Equality for religious sects in Ireland, 7, 9, 10. 
 
 Estates, great, evils of, 328. 
 
 Europe, Turkish rule in, 189 ; a great camp, 296. 
 
 Expenditure, national, in 1858, 62 ; excessive national, a cause 
 of poverty, 220. 
 
 Extempore speaking and preaching, 166. 
 
 F. 
 
 Factory Acts, 292. 
 
 Fagot voting, 243. 
 
 Fair Trade, 297 ; a delusion, 298* 
 
 Fallacies of Protection, 256. 
 
 Farmers, their representation, 101-2 ; easy for, to combine, 102; 
 
 the Game Laws and, 103, 240. 
 Food, importations into England, 175 ; Free Trade in relation 
 
 to price of, 175. 
 
INDEX. 345 
 
 Foreign policy, 1 ; of Lord Beaconsfield's Government, 210, 213, 
 225. 
 
 France, demands of, upon Turkish Government, 33 ; prospects 
 of Free Trade in, 258. 
 
 Free land, 160. 
 
 Free Trade, and Tory pamphleteers, 148 ; and French Commer- 
 cial Treaty, 153 ; ia relation to the price of food, 175 ; and 
 the English colonies, 199 ; and armaments, 207 ; between 
 nations, wonld give peace, 208 ; a means of avoiding war, 
 217; in the future, 223; the condition of England under, 
 227 ; and the depression in trade in 1879, 228 ; its progress 
 and results, 233; predictions with respect to, 234; and 
 foreign tariffs, 257 ; prospects in France, 258 ; benefits of, 
 267 ; the true policy, 289 ; and depressed industries, 300 ; 
 the intention of, 301 ; results of, in England, 311 ; effect of, 
 on wages, 312. 
 
 Free Traders and fagot voting, 243. 
 
 French Commercial Treaty, 153, 263. 
 
 French war, just, according to " law of nations," 27. 
 
 Funeral reform, 188. 
 
 Game Laws, 100, 239 ; and farmers, 240 ; will come under re- 
 vision by future electorate, 328. 
 
 Garth's libels, Mr., 117. 
 
 Genoa, representation of, 53. 
 
 Germany and its tariff, 235. 
 
 Gibson, Mr. T. Milner, vote on foreign policy, 4 ; letter on, 56 ; 
 moves amendment to Conspiracy Bill, 59. 
 
 Gladstone Government, policy of, in the Transvaal, 252. 
 
 Gladstone, Mr., speaks against Mr. Eoebuck's resolution, 2 ; 
 supports Mr. Milner Gibson's amendment to Conspiracy 
 Bill, 60 ; his position with respect to Irish questions, 143 ; 
 attitude of Whigs and Radicals towards, 144. 
 
 Glasgow University, Mr. Bright elected Lord Hector of, 248. 
 
 Government and new enterprises, 201. 
 
 Government, the Beaconsfield, and the Eastern Question, 190 ; 
 charged with constant deception, 210 ; and freedom, 211; 
 the foreign policy of, 210, 213, 225 ; its defeat, 246. 
 
 Government, the Gladstone, policy of, in the Transvaal, 252. 
 
 Gray, Sir John, M.P., letter to, 5. 
 
 Greece, sympathy of the English for, 24. 
 
 Grey, Lord, on the claims of Catholics in Ireland, 8. 
 
 Hi 
 
 Hare, Mr., his election scheme, 286 ; his supporters, 287. 
 
346 INDEX, 
 
 Home Rule, 149, 181. 
 
 Honesty the best policy, 309. 
 
 Household sufirage, will enable people to prevent war, 293. 
 
 Hunne, Mr., his vote on the foreign policy of Lord John Russell's 
 
 Government, 4. 
 Hyde Park demonstration, 112. 
 
 I. 
 
 Income tax, 82, 87, 151, 279. 
 
 India, Government of, 47, 75 ; the English people and, 75 ; im- 
 port and excise duties, 205 ; government of, 281 ; disposi- 
 tion of people of England towards, 282 ; wise government 
 of, may be impossible, 282 ; government of, 309 ; growing 
 interest in Enuland in welfare of, 310; Lord Ripon'a 
 administraticm of, 310. 
 
 Indian corn, use of, in England, 159. 
 
 Indian troops, employment of, 21L 
 
 Industry protected, confined to its own market, 288. 
 
 Inquisition of blood, 35. 
 
 Integrity in business, 308. 
 
 Intervention between Russia and Turkey, the cost of, 34. 
 
 Ireland, ecclesiastical arrangements in, 11 ; Protestant Episco- 
 palian Church, endowments of, 12 ; Presbyterian Church, 
 endowments of, 12; Roman Catholic Church, endowments 
 of, 12; Catholics in, hardships of, 12; Church Property 
 Commission, 13 ; parishes in, 14; College of Maynooth, 
 grant to, 14; Presbyterians in, 14; Protestant Episco- 
 palians in, 15, 18 ; Church endowments, distribution of, 
 13 — 16; history of, 18; tranquillity of, means of securing, 
 20 ; reforms in, 94; Land Law, reform in, 95 ; State Church 
 in, 95; anticipated visit to, 116; land question, 138; Church 
 and land, 140 ; only way to remedy evils of, 142 ; and the 
 Tories, 142 ; and the Whigs, 143 ; Home Rule for, 149, 181 ; 
 Sunday closing in, 177, 188; future of, 283. 
 
 Irish affairs, 105. 
 
 Irish Land Bill of 1881, 264. 
 
 Irish members and the Liberal party, 209. 
 
 Irish questions, 94; 140. 
 
 Juvenile smoking, 223. 
 
 Kay, Mr. Joseph, 196. 
 Kindness to animals, 203. 
 
 J. 
 
 K. 
 
INDEX. 347 
 
 IN- 
 LAND, monopoly in, a cause of poverty, 220 ; and its rent, 315 ; 
 
 what it wants, 318; if not worth rent, will be rent free, 
 
 316, 318. 
 Land laws, 293; schemes of confiscation with, regard to, 
 
 deprecated, 294 ; owners of the soil will profit by change 
 
 in, 294 ; will be reformed, 328. 
 Landowners, monarchs, aristocracy and, 249. 
 Land question, 160; Mr. Joseph Kay and, 197. 
 Legislation to prevent cattle disease, 187. 
 Liberal party, its degeneracy under unworthy leaders, 86; 
 
 letter on, 168 ; in Accrington, 212 ; in relation to agricul- 
 tural labourers, 323 ; its future work, 328. 
 Licensing system, 93, 161. 
 
 Liquor traffic, and the Tory party, 214; letter on, 218. 
 Llandudno pensioner, 300. 
 Lords, House of, 145, 303; veto of, an insult to House of 
 
 Commons, 304. 
 Lowther, Hon. James, his qualities as Chief Secretary for 
 
 Ireland, 252. 
 Luther, work of, 282. 
 
 M. 
 
 Ma.lt tax, 92, 153. 
 
 Marriage laws, 280. 
 
 Marriage with deceased wife's sister, legality of, in colonies, 
 
 280. 
 Menschikoff, Prince, note of, 28. 
 Middle class, English representation of, 85. 
 Military expenses, increase of, 62. 
 Military services, rapacity of, 85. 
 Mill, John Stuart, and Free Trade, 201. 
 Minority members, 247. 
 Minority representation, 284, 286. 
 Misrepresentation, Tory, 226. 
 Monarchs, aristocracy, and landowners, 249. 
 Monopoly, a milder form of slavery, 222. 
 Morley, Mr. Samuel, letter from, 70 ; letter to, 71. 
 Mourning, the wearing of, 188. 
 
 N. 
 
 National crime, followed by punishment, 270. 
 
 Nesselrode, Count, 30, 
 
 Newspapers and Parliamentary reporting, 199. 
 
 New York Chamber of Commerce, 88. 
 
 Non-intervention between Russia and Turkey, the true policy, 33. 
 
348 INDEX. 
 
 0. 
 
 Oaths, forbidden in ISTew Testament, 278 ; lessen the value of 
 ordinary statements, 278 ; effect of, on ignorant persons, 
 278; have impaired regard for truth, 279. 
 
 Orton, Arthur, 184. 
 
 P. 
 
 Palmerston, Lord, his defence of his policy, 2; conduct in 
 1850, 28 ; introduces Conspiracy Bill, 58 ; resigns office, 
 60 ; his conception of a country's grandeur, 85 ; his attitude 
 towards Reform, 97, 100. 
 
 Palmerston Government, character of, 60. 
 
 Parliament, want of zeal of, for Reform, 107 ; duties of 233 
 abundant supply of clever men in, 285 ; effect of matmg it 
 a photograph of every phase of public opinion, 286. 
 
 Parliamentary reporting, 198. 
 
 Parliaments, septennial, 225. 
 
 Peace, and war, 193 ; influences in favour of, 194 ; love of, 
 increasing in England, 296. 
 
 Peel, Sir Robert, character of, 4 ; imposed income tax, 83 ; 
 taught futility of war of tariffs, 258 ; repealed Corn Law, 
 825 ; Tory party angry with, because he would not maintain 
 Corn Law, 326. ^ 
 
 Peers, and the nation, 147 ; 303. 
 
 Pensions, perpetual, 225. 
 
 People, causes of sufferings of, 22L 
 
 Permissive Bill, 162, 215. 
 
 Peterborough, Bishop of, his description of Mr. Bright's speech 
 _ on the Burials Bill, 203. 
 
 Political economy, neglect of the study of, 11. 
 
 Political freedom, due to Liberal party, 325. 
 
 Political questions, the study of, 241.' 
 
 Poor, the virtuous, 219. 
 
 Postal delivery, Sunday, 307. 
 
 Post offices, effect of closing on Sundays on young people 
 absent from home, 306 ; public inconvenience of Sunday 
 closing of, 307. 
 
 Preachers, majority of, not good speakers, 167. 
 
 Preaching, extempore speaking and, 166. 
 
 Primogeniture and entail, 293. 
 
 Procedure, rules of, 273. 
 
 Protected industry, confined to its own market, 288. 
 
 Protection, in the United States, 220 ; the chance of a return 
 to, in England, 230 ; fallacies of, 256 ; to return to, would 
 be confession of having been wrong, 261 ; if needful is 
 
INDEX. 349 
 
 needful for farming class, 261 ; in young countries, 287 ; 
 tendency of, to make men dishonest in public affairs, 289 ; 
 when demanded for an industry is simply a " rate in aid," 
 302 ; injurious to foreign trade, 313. 
 Pruth, passage of the, 29. 
 
 E. 
 
 Eeciprocitt, 260 ; futility of, 266. 
 
 Eedistribution, necessity of, 43, 51, 137. 
 
 Eeform, letters on, 42, 49, 69, 96, 99, 106, 112, 128, 137. 
 
 Eeform Bill, Lord John Russell's, 44; Mr. Bright's, 69; Lord 
 
 Derby's, 69, 112; Earl Eussell's, 106,110; Lord Palrner- 
 
 ston's, 112; Mr. Disraeli's, 133. 
 Eeform, period of, not yet ended, 329. 
 Eeform resolutions of 1867, 128, 132. 
 Eent, land and its, 315 ; of a mill, how does it differ from rent 
 
 of a farm, 319. 
 Eents, cannot be sustained by Parliament, 298. 
 Eeporting, Parliamentary, 198. 
 Eepublicanism, 152. 
 Eesiduum, the, 163. 
 
 Eetrenchment, the word become almost obsolete, 42. 
 Eipon, Lord, his administration of India, 310. 
 Eoebuck's resolution, Mr., 1. 
 Eubery's case, Mr., 90. 
 Eules of procedure, 273. ^ ^ 
 Eussell, Lord John, his opinion on the religious question in 
 
 Ireland, 8; conduct in 1850, 28; his Eeform Bill, 44 ; hia 
 
 conception of a country's grandeur, 85. 
 Eussell, Earl, and Ireland, 143. 
 Eussia, and Turkey, cost of intervention between, 34 ; jealousy 
 
 of, on the part of England, 195. 
 Eussia, the war with, letters on, 22, 26 ; professed objects of, 
 
 23 ; the English public and, 24 ; result of, 24 ; the record 
 
 of history concerning, 25 ; Vattel and, 26, 27, 28. 
 Eussian note, rejected by the Turks, 28. 
 
 S. 
 
 Salford, bye-election in 1877, 196. ^ 
 
 Salisbury, Lord, his misrepresentation of Mr. Bright, 304. 
 
 Salvation Army, 270. 
 
 Scotland, preservation of game in, ^^. 
 
 Sea, dislike of Mr. Bright for, 277. ^ 
 
 Secret voting in representative bodies, 178. 
 
 Septennial Parliaments, 225. 
 
350 INDEX. 
 
 Sermons, tlie reading of, 167. 
 
 Service, the Civil, 170. 
 
 Settled Estates Bill, 294 
 
 Slavery in tlie United States, 269. 
 
 Slavery, monopoly a milder form of, 222. 
 
 Smoking, juvenile, 223. 
 
 Somervell, Mr., letter to Mr. Bright, 321 ; Mr. Bright's reply, 
 
 322. 
 Speaking acd preaching, extempore, 166. 
 Standing armies, principal cause of, 218, 
 Statesmanship, what it consists in, 20. 
 Stratford de Redcliffe, Lord, 28. 
 Strikes, 76. 
 
 Sugar, monopoly in, destroyed by Liberal party, 326. 
 Sumner, Mr. Charles, letter on, 169. 
 Sunday closing in Ireland, 177. 
 Sunday postal delivery, 306. 
 
 T. 
 
 Tariff, moderate, in America, desirability of, 230 ; Germany 
 and its, 235 ; how compel America to reduce, 259 ; change 
 wrought by reform of, 312. 
 
 Tariff protection, nature of, 289. 
 
 Tariffs, abolition of, will promote peace, 218 ; reduction of, 
 futility of attempting to force other countries to, 258 ; in 
 foreign countries make it impossible for them to have a 
 larger foreign trade, 313. 
 
 Taxation and representation, 82. 
 
 Temperance, Christian churches and, 1 72, 174 ; legislation, 172 ; 
 friends of, should form opinion, 172. 
 
 Tichborne case, the, 183. 
 
 Three-cornered constituencies, 134, 145, 247. 
 
 Times, the, on the rejection of the Vienna note by Turkey, 29. 
 
 Tories and Ireland, 143. 
 
 Tory clergy, 251. 
 
 Tory misrepresentation, 226. 
 
 Tory party, hostility of, to enfranchisement of working men, 
 111. 
 
 Trade, depression in, in 1879, and its causes, 231 ; depression 
 in, and cheap food, 232 ; between England and the 
 United States, 245 ; depression in, cause of, 260 ; depres- 
 sion in, greater under Protection than under Free Trade, 
 313. 
 
 Transvaal, policy of Gladstone Government in, 252; peace, 
 253, 254. 
 
INDEX. 351 
 
 Turkey, determination of, to declare war, 30 ; declares war, 
 31 ; nature of its Grovernment, 33 ; cost of intervention 
 between Russia and, 34 ; the policy of England towards, 
 191. 
 
 Turkish rule in Europe, 189. 
 
 Tyranny, force no longer used as instrument of, 85. 
 
 U. 
 
 United States, 88 ; no other country in which men have been 
 so free, 89 ; Mr. Bright invited to, 98 ; and trade with 
 Canada, 99 ; and Protection, 222 ; distress in, 227 ; and a 
 moderate tariff, 230; and England, trade between, 245; 
 their protective tariff, 259 ; slavery in, 269 ; Mr. Bright 
 again invited to, 275 ; when Protection abolished in, may 
 find market in India, 282 ; prospect of, being preserved 
 from war in future, 296. 
 
 V. 
 
 Yaccination, 174, 290 ; might have been as general if it had 
 not been compulsory, 291. 
 
 Vattel, the justness of the Crimean war according to, 26. 
 
 Yictoria, the colony of, and Free Trade, 202. 
 
 Vienna note, agreed upon by four powers, 28 ; accepted by 
 Russia, 29 ; refused by Turkey, 29 ; origin of, 29 ; con- 
 struction put upon, by Russia, 29; French Government's 
 advice to Russia with respect to, 30 ; agreed to by England, 
 30; declared inadmissible by Turkey, 31. 
 
 W. 
 
 Wages, effect of Free Trade on, 312 ; cannot be kept up by Act 
 
 of Parliament or act of multitude, 335. 
 War, description of, 35 ; letters on, 195, 292 ; the prevention 
 
 of, 216; grounds of Mr. Bright's opposition to, 272; ita 
 
 effects on working men, 293 ; feeling against, increasing, 
 
 296. 
 War, Crimean, its results, ^^ ; letter on, 242. 
 War in Egypt, 271 ; no better justification for than other wars, 
 
 273. 
 Wars, past, and the working classes, 195, 213 ; which might 
 
 have been avoided, 238. 
 Watkin, Mr. Absalom, letter to, 26. 
 Whalley, Mr., M.P., and the Tichbarne case, 186. 
 
352 INDEX. 
 
 Wheat, yield of, in 1884, 315 ; present price not permanent, 
 
 317. 
 Whigs and Ireland, 143. 
 
 Whig peers and three-cornered constituencies, 134. 
 Whisky in Scotland, and povert}^ 221 . 
 Work of Luther, 282. 
 Working classes, condition of, in 1858, 65 ; and the Crimean 
 
 war, 65 ; their exclusion from the suffrage, 78 ; and past 
 
 wars, 195, 213 ; how affected by war, 293 ; their present 
 
 condition, 298. 
 Working-men candidates, 179. 
 Workmen, their right to combine, 80, 
 
 Young countries. Protection in, 287 ; introduction of any system 
 of tariff protection in, should be resisted, 289. 
 
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List of Publications. 27 
 
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