260
PROGRESS.
Mr. Cobden, reviewing the proceedings of the League, and adverting to the change of opinion that had already taken place amongst the agriculturists, spoke in the same hopeful tone:—
"Our worthy chairman has told you something of our late proceedings. Some of our cavilling friends—and there are a good many of that class, men who seem to be a little bilious at times, and are rather disposed to criticise—individuals who do not move on themselves, and, not being gregarious animals, are incapable of helping other people to move on, and therefore they have nothing to do but to sit by and quarrel with others—these men say, 'This is a new move of the League, attacking the landlords in their counties; it is a change in their tactics.' But we are altering nothing, and we have not changed a single thing. I believe every step we have taken has been necessary, in order to arrive at the present stage of our movement. (Hear.) We began by lecturing and distributing tracts, in order to create an enlightened public opinion; we did that for two or three years necessarily. We then commenced operations in the boroughs; and never at any time was there so much sytematic attention, labour, and expense devoted to the boroughs of this country in the way of registration as at the present time. (Hear, hear.) As regards our lectures, why, we continue them still, only that, instead of having small rooms, up three pair of stairs back, as we used to do, we have magnificent assemblies, as that now before me. (Cheers.) We distribute our tracts, but in another form; we have our own organ, the League paper, twenty thousand copies of which have gone out every week for the last twelve months. I have no doubt that that journal penetrates into every parish of the United Kingdom, and goes the round of the district. Now, in addition to what we proposed before, we think we have had a new light; we rather expect that we can disturb the monopolists in their own counties. (Cheers.) The first objection that is made to that plan is, that it is a game which two can play at; that the monopolists can adopt the move as well as we can. I have answered that objection before, by saying that we are in the very fortunate predicament of sitting down to play a game at a table where our opponents have possession of all the stakes, and we have nothing to lose. (Hear, hear.) They have played at it for a long time, and won all the counties; my friend Mr. Villiers had not a single county voter the last time he brought forward his motion. There are 152 English and Welsh county members, and I really think it would baffle the arithmetic of my friend the member for Wolverhampton to make out clearly that he could carry a majority of the house without having some of them. We are going to try if we cannot get him a few. We
