302 LIFE OF OOBDEX. Fos?

1844.
Ar. 40.

was a very wise speech, though it may have been made #8
party move against Peel. Brougham poured outa torrent ©
invective in the House of Lords against all interference with
labour. Most of the official Whigs, on the contrary, went 0°
the limitation of ten hours, though they had stoutly oppose’
the same proposal when they were in power ; but in the end
the Government carried their Act for twelve hours.
“I did not vote upon the Factory question,” Cobden wrote:
“The fact is the Government are being whipped with 8 od
of their own pickling. They used the ten hours’ cry, and ol
other cries, to get into power, and now they find themselve®
unable to lay the devil they raised for the destruction of ne
Whigs. The trickery of the Government was kept up til
the time of Ashley’s motion, in the confident expectation that
he would be defeated by the Whigs and Free Traders. TheS
(the Government) were calculating upon this support, and $0
they gave liberty to Wortley and others of their party to vote
against the Cabinet in order to get favour at the husting®
The Whigs very basely turned round upon their forme’
opinions to spite the Tories. The only good result is that
no Government or party will in future like to use the factory
question for a cry. The last year’s education question, and
this year’s ten hours Bill, will sicken the factions of such?
two-edged weapon. One other good effect may be that 1"
like Graham and Peel will see the necessity of taking anchor
upon some sound principles, as a refuge from the Socialis
doctrines of the fools behind them. But at all events £09
must come out of such startling discussions.”?

It cannot be seriously denied that Cobden was fully just
fied in describing the tendencies of this legislation as social
istic. It was an exertion of the power of the State in its
strongest form, definitely limiting in the interest of tho
8 To PF. W. Cobden, March 28, 1844,