Great Britain -- Description and travel; Great Britain -- Rural conditions
Somebody proposed to drink this Toast with _three times three_, which
was accordingly done, and the sound might have been heard down to the
close.--Upon some Gentleman giving _my health_, I took occasion to
remind the company that the last time I was at Winchester we had the
memorable fight with Lockhart "the Brave" and his sable friends. I
reminded them that it was in that same room that I told them that it
would not be long before Mr. Lockhart and those sable gentlemen would
become enlightened; and I observed that, if we were to judge from a
man's language, there was not a land-owner in England that more keenly
felt than Mr. Lockhart the truth of those predictions which I had put
forth at the Castle on the day alluded to. I reminded the company that I
sailed for America in a few days after that meeting; that they must be
well aware that, on the day of the meeting, I knew that I was taking
leave of the country, but, I observed, that I had not been in the least
depressed by that circumstance; because I relied, with perfect
confidence, on being in this same place again, to enjoy, as I now did, a
triumph over my adversaries.
After this, Mr. Hector gave a _Constitutional Reform in the Commons'
House of Parliament_, which was drunk with great enthusiasm; and Mr.
Hector's health having been given, he, in returning thanks, urged his
brother yeomen and freeholders to do their duty by coming forward in
county meeting and giving their support to those noblemen and gentlemen
that were willing to stand forward for a reform and for a reduction of
taxation. I held forth to them the example of the county of Kent, which
had done itself so much honour by its conduct last spring. What these
gentlemen in Hampshire will do it is not for me to say. If nothing be
done by them, they will certainly be ruined, and that ruin they will
certainly deserve. It was to the farmers that the Government owed its
strength to carry on the war. Having them with it, in consequence of a
false and bloated prosperity, it cared not a straw for anybody else. If
they, therefore, now do their duty; if they all, like the yeomen and
farmers of Kent, come boldly forward, everything will be done necessary
to preserve themselves and their country; and if they do not come
forward, they will, as men of property, be swept from the face of the
earth. The noblemen and gentlemen who are in Parliament, and who are
disposed to adopt measures of effectual relief, cannot move with any
hope of success unless backed by the yeomen and farmers, and the
middling classes throughout the country generally. I do not mean to
confine myself to yeomen and farmers, but to take in all tradesmen and
men of property. With these at their back, or rather, at the back of
these, there are men enough in both Houses of Parliament to propose and
to urge measures suitable to the exigency of the case. But without the
middling classes to _take the lead_, those noblemen and gentlemen can do
nothing.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account