EMIGRATION. Mr. Wilmot Horton
presented a Petition from Frome, praying
means of Emigration for certain Paupers
who were willing to leave the country.
He could not allow that opportunity to
pass, notwithstanding what had been said
about making speeches on presenting petitions,
without saying a few words on the
subject to which the petition related. The
petition stated, that of 14,000 persons in
the parish, one-third habitually or casually
received relief, and able-bodied workmen
were not able to find employment. It
appeared by the petition that the parish
allowance was so small that the people
could hardly subsist, and that the majority
of them would gladly emigrate to our
colonies. The petition further stated, that
if the parish could borrow money, to be
paid back by installments, for the purpose
of carrying the paupers away, that expedient
would be most gladly had recourse
to. A bill to enable parishes to do that
he had introduced into the House, but the
state of public business had been such,
that he had been unable to get it discussed.
If that measure were passed, a number
of individuals would go to our colonies
who now went to America, and were lost
to this country, besides those whom parishes
would send from destitution and idleness
here, to plenty and industry in our colonies.
He would not occupy the House with
noticing all the applications he had
received on the subject of this bill, and all
the letters he had received testifying to
the propriety of the scheme. It gave him
great pleasure, however, to find, that it
met the approbation of men of science, as
well as of practical men engaged in the
management of the poor. With the permission
of the House he would read the
opinion of one or two eminent men which
had been addressed to him. [The right
hon. Gentleman accordingly read an extract
of a letter from Mr. Tooke, the
author of a work on prices; from Mr.
Malthus, author of the "Essay on Population,"
and Mr. Hodges, a magistrate of
Kent, expressing their approbation of the
right hon. Gentleman's letters on the
"Causes and Cure of Pauperism." He
would not enter further into the subject,
as he knew it was not agreeable to the
House; he would only say, that in his
opinion, little benefit would be conferred
on the poor by the remission of taxes,
and he believed that they would not be
effectually relieved till some comprehensive
scheme was adopted to remove from
our land the superabundance of labour.
Mr. Trant was of opinion, that our
people would have found employment
enough at home if it had not been for the
Free Trade system, of which the right
hon. Gentleman was an admirer.
Mr. Slaney complimented Mr. Wilmot
Horton on the great attention he had paid
to this grateful subject. He had himself
been an unworthy labourer in the
same field, and had striven to lighten
the load of poverty and misery. Something
more might yet be done, he thought, by
remedying the abuses which had crept
into the Poor-laws. Great improvements
had already been made by committees of
that House inquiring into the subject, and
he had no doubt that still greater
improvements might be effected by the same
means.
Mr. Baring thought, that this was one
of the most important subjects that could
occupy the attention of the Legislature,
and he concurred with the last speaker
that much might be done by improving
the administration of the Poor-laws,
particularly if that were combined with some
scheme like that of the hon. member for
Newcastle. He conceived that there was
but one radical cure - that of providing
the poor with means to emigrate, taking
care, by a wiser administration of the
Poor-laws than at present, to prevent the
subsequent increase of paupers: emigration
would alike benefit the mother country
and the colonies. Taking the whole
world into consideration it might be
doubted if the population had ever much
varied; and while the population had in
latter times increased in Europe, in Asia
it had decreased. At the same time it
was very beneficial to that part of the
world which was at any particular time
too fully peopled, to find a vent for its
population; and he was to be looked on
as a benefactor to mankind, who shewed
them how they might more equally spread
themselves over their heritage. At present
families might go to Canada from this
country at as small a cost as from Boston;
but the great difficulty was in giving
parishes the power of burthening themselves
with debts, in order to obtain a
great present reief. This was, he thought,
a proper subject for the Government to
take in hand, and he did not doubt, if it
were to do that, but some effectual means
of relief might be devised.
Lord John Russel begged to return his
thanks to the hon. member for Newcastle
for the pains he had taken with this subject;
but at the same time he was of
opinion, that it was one that could only be
successfully prosecuted by the Government.
He was also of opinion, that the
system of emigration, and an improved
system of Poor-laws, should go hand in
hand.
Sir Robert Peel thought that his
right hon. Friend deserved great praise for
his exertions. He would recommend him
not to tie the House down to the details
of his plan, and he would probably find
many members who would agree with him
in principle. It was his opinion that a
great advantage would result from encouraging
capitalists to settle in the colonies.
They would have both motives and means
to take labourers with them, and would
carry off some of our superfluous hands,
without putting the parishes to an expense,
from the effects of which they might never
relieve themselves.
Mr. Wilmot Horton, on moving that the
petition be laid on the Table, said, that it
was a mistake to suppose that his plan
would entail a permanent burthen on
parishes. The object he had in view might
be effected by three years purchase, if he
might use that phrase, of the existing
poor-rates. The debt already existed in
the claims of the paupers on the parish;
and his plan, instead of augmenting that
debt, would diminish it. He admitted
that the subject required much consideration
before any legislative measures were
adopted, and he was only anxious to get
the House to take the subject into
consideration, being sure that none would have
a more permanent influence on welfare
of the country.
Mr. Baring wished to observe, that if
the right hon. Gentleman's estimate were
correct, if three years of the present rate
would pay all the expenses of emigration,
then certainly the parishes might find
means to carry the plan into effect. He
was glad to hear what fell from the right
hon. Gentleman, though he was apprehensive
that he laboured under a mistake
in supposing that middle-men or capitalists,
would be advantageous to our colonies.
They must be speculators in land, and
would do injury to the welfare of the
people. Already they had been an impediment
in the way of Government settling
the colonies. Giving the right hon.
Gentleman credit for the best intentions, he
was apprehensive that, were his wishes
carried into effect, much jobbing would
be the consequence. In Canada, in Prince
Edward's Island, and other colonies, where
middle-men were established, they were
the bane of those settlements. They were
like dogs in the manger; they possessed
land which they could not use themselves,
and would not allow people to use.
It would be far better for the Government
to open an office in the colonies, and
transfer at once to the settlers on the spots
they were permanently to occupy.
Mr. M. Fitzgerald said, that the hon.
Member had mistaken the suggestion of
his right hon. friend, which was neither
more nor less than to encourage capitalists
to settle in the colonies, who would necessarily
carry labourers with them, or invite
them to follow. Already that system had
been acted on, and it was well known that
for several years past from 20 to 30,000
persons had emigrated annually, without
any expense to the public. Those persons
who emigrated with capital formed the
middle class in the colonies, and provided
employment for the labourers. His right
hon. friend's plan was confined to relieving
those who were in misery at home, but
they ought not to be landed in the colonies
in a state of destitution; and it was of
great importance, therefore, that capitalists
should be on the spot, or prepared to go
thither, and find the labourers employment
on their arrival.
Petition to be printed.
