§ Mr. Ellice,seeing the 357 President of the Board of Trade in his place, wished to take the opportunity of presenting a petition from the manufacturers engaged in the ribbon trade in Coventry, who employed upwards of 24,000 workmen; setting forth the apprehensions they entertained from the competition into which they would be forced with the French and Swiss trade in July next, on the admission of the foreign article. Whether the apprehensions of the manufacturers were well or ill founded, he would not now stop to inquire, although his belief was, that they were founded upon incontrovertible truths. In answer to the communications which had passed between this trade and the lords of the Treasury, the latter declared their dissent from the alarms of the former, and expressed their conviction, that no greater importation of foreign goods would legally take place from the operation of the new measure, than at present took place through the traffic of smugglers. The manufacturers, however, entertained very different feelings on the subject, and were fully impressed with the belief, that if the government persevered in their intentions, the trade must necessarily decay, and they would be under the necessity of discharging all their workmen. Now, the issue upon which he was prepared to put this question was simply this: either the petitioners were correct in their view, or they were not; and for the purpose of ascertaining that point, he intended to move for the appointment of a committee, where alone the proper light could be thrown upon the subject. He therefore gave this notice, that on the 22nd inst. he meant to move, that all the petitions which had been presented upon this subject, be referred to a select committee, to examine and report thereon. The impression out of doors was, that it would be madness to open this trade to foreign competition; and, notwithstanding the determination expressed by ministers to persevere, a strong hope was entertained, that they would depart from that intention, on seeing the distress which their new course of proceeding would calculate to bring upon the country.
§ Mr. Huskissonwas desirous of merely stating now, that the opinion noticed by the hon. gentleman, that the quantity of silk goods to be introduced from France by the proposed alterations of the law, would be precisely the quantity at present brought in by smuggling was no opinion 358 of his. Whoever might have advanced it, he was no party to it. He should not at present enter into the discussion of the great question; but on the 22nd, he should be ready to debate the merits of the bill, and to meet the question upon principle.
Sir T. Lethbridgewas glad that the discussion would so speedily take place, but he would have been more satisfied, if the right hon. gentleman had given them hopes that he would assent to the appointment of the committee. If the manufacturers complained of one thing more than another, it was that no satisfactory reasons had been assigned for the intended alteration of the law.
§ Mr. Davenportexpressed his regret that ministers were not more explicit on the subject.