MEMOIR OF MR. JOSEPH STURGE.

Colonist, Volume II, Issue 192, 23 August 1859, Page 3

MEMOIR OF MR. JOSEPH STURGE.

Mr. Joseph Sturge was the second son of Joseph Sturge, a farmer at Alberton, a village in Gloucestershire, about nine miles north of Bristol. He was born on the 2nd of August, 1793, and on at- j taining the age of 21, settled at Bewdley as a corn i merchant. From thence, in 1820, he removed to Birmingham, and established the firm of Joseph and Charles Sturge, which has ever since been recognised as one of the principle corn-dealing, houses in the world. To the judgment and energy of Mr. Joseph Sturge is due much of the success of the,house. Mr. Sturge'was twice married— first, in 1834, to Eliza, only daughter of Mr. James Cropper, of the Dingle, Liverpool, a man well known alike for his commercial reputation and his exalted philanthropy. His first wife, with her child, died shortly after their marriage; and Mr. Sturge afterwards married Hannah, the youngest daughter of Mr. Bernard Diekenson, of Goalbrookdale, by whom he has left five children, all young. In his private life Mr. Sturge was a tender husband, a firm, yet indulgent father, and a fast and unvarying friend. Only those who were admitted to his intimacy know how deeply and how justly he was belored ;and how many andfrequent proofs he gave of generosity of disposition and nobleness of heart. In his public relations Mr. Sturge occupied a position rarely attained by a man engaged in conducting a great and hazardous commercial enterprise. His sympathies were constantly with the oppressed, and the poor; but was chiefly dis tin-, gnisiied by his great exertions against slavery, on behalf of peace, in opposition,to the com laws, in" the promotion of the "principles of total abstinence, ami iv the establishment of reformatory schools. Mi.i first appearance in public life was caused by the deep indignation lie, in common with so many good men of that nay, frit against the system of African Slavery. From the year 1033 until the final abolition of slavery in the British dominions, he worked unceasingly to. uproot the horrible system. With Brougham, Wilberforce, Clarkson. and-Buxton, he fought the battle of freedom by his personal exertions* both in writing and speaking, and by the help of his purse, for he never adopted any can so to which he did not contribute to the fullest extent of his means. Dis*a'isfted with the" concession, and doubtful of the workin"of the act which substituted the apprenticeship system for the importation of absolute slaves, Mr. Sturge, in 1837* made, at his own cost, a'journey to the West India Islands, to examine for himself the state of the negro population. He collected a vast body of information, which was laid before a parliamentary committee, and, by its crushing force, supported hy a long and vigorous public agitation, this evidence was mainly instrumental in procuring the Act of Parliament by which slavery in every form was declared to be abolished in the British dominions. In conjunction with Mr. Harvey, a gentieraau who accompanied him, Mr. Sturge afterwards published a narrative of his voyage which is still a standard authority on the subject of which it treats. . , Nexttpty's labors in the" An(i-Slavery cause, Mr. Sturge is best known for his prolonged and earnest endeavors to promote international peace. He waa.one of the first, if not the first, in England to promote the diffusion of those principles of : non-intervention on which much inconsiderate ridicule his been expended, but which the great body of our countrymen are now sikntly adopting. Ho attended and took a prbminant share in the Peace Congress at Brussels in 1848,-at Pamin ■ 1849, at Franfojt-in 1850, London in 1351> and elsewhere in subsequent years, and fo the last days of his life his interest iv. the great cause he had undertaken was predominant in his jmind.! But Joseph Sturge was not the man to shrink from bringing his principles to practic at test, at whatever cost of time, labor, or money. Accordingly, in conjunction with a few other persons'as earnest as himself, he more than once ventured into a hostile camp on a mission of reconciliation and peace. During the war between Denmark and the Duchies, in 1848, he went first to. the head-quarters of the Scliloswig Holsteiners, and then to the capital of,-Denmark,: to.endeavor to persuade the belligerents to refer their disputes to arbitration, ia accordance with the .spirit of Christianity, and with the provisions of the.constitution to which they both had promised allegiance.. His visit to Russia in 1854, with Mr. Pease, the member for-Soth Durham, and Mr. R.CharUton ii fresh in the public mind. In the establishment of reformatory schools he took an active share. It was by his exertions that the Birmingham, school—first in the provinces—was commenced, and fan Impulse _ thus given to the founo'a ion of these institutions throughout the kingdom. For several years past"Mr.-. Sturge, and-his'brother, Mr. Charles Sturge, have themselves supported a a reformatory school on their farm at Stoke, near Birmingham. In politics Mr. Joseph Sturge was what we may fairly_call an advanced- Radical. He was an advocate of " manhood " suffrage, of the removal of all rejigiousand civil disabilities, of complete freedom" of commerce, and, indeed,' of all those points wuic.h are advocated by the party of which Mr. John Bright hap become the leader. The perfect simplicity of his character, his high honor, his-sterling honesty in every relation of public and private life, and his readiness to concede to others the same freedom of action, and the same purity of motive that be claimed for hims. IF, all contributed to ensure him the.respect and regard of all persons who knew him. This sentiment of regard his generous beneficence deepened into attachment. His ear was never deaf, nor his hand ciosed, against any tale of distress; but not a tithe of his benefactions is known'to-the world, for, like.all good men," he was much given in his charities to observe the Scriptural precept—"" Let not thy left hand know what thy r'ght hand doeth." To public charities and educational institutions he was a constant and liberal donor, he was also a warm supporter of those religious ob- j

jeeta to Which his principle*, 91 ft metakrof &* Society of Friends, allowed him to contribute. If our space permitted, we would say m itch more of one, the half of whosa virtues will never become • known, but whose kindly nature wan widely and warmly appreciated even by those who koey little of him, and whose quick active step, cheerful voice, and genial sihile will long be "missed by those amongst whom his busy, useful, selfrdeay* ing life was passed. .. -