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j ( Continued from our suctk page . ) [ arable ornamenfa of the person conld te hum : &rf « W" «** I » could ever possibly have existed . Qt fte means by -which men -were bonnd together * £ , 00 a feeling of mutual security , and were P \ jed ftom a sense of common benefits from common » it tras upon the laws of the ancients tbat the Lptot ions of this country , of -which we are liable to ^ w ere securely fixed , ^ d u n these rests a the ^ g lory and the present of renown of England . If ^ . is anvthing which modern experience has added , r , iti compelled to admit it is hut imitating the track Jar forefathers . If there is anything left worthy of ^ ration or deserving of respect , let us p oint to the •^ tive source , and admit onr own degeneration Lit may be doubted whether the people when as-Sked , possessed the tight to deliberate . From n , = ; ( antinuedfrom ourvtlk wej
jjjn ' s Saxon laws we learn that "Withred the gaT Canterbury , gathered the people together to ** " 3 > ^ i ^ " a 6 re were all tne eTergy ^ JS ^^ T ^^ *»* the congrl ^ e stobh ^ ed ffieff lawa . " It appears , then , <* £ * and ^ TO rt ttere "Wfllahe d , St the ff Oe were caQedeo counca and did create laws ^ to make us certam w ith regard to the extension fce nght , we are informed that "the herds j ; vere also there , and further that "the chiefs " jthe asembled people all united , forming a sagre ^ tion , did establishiheir laws . MyLord i GentiemenoftheJuiy , according to the ancient iiM be chosen by a full , free , and uncontrolled ™>« ^ pe ^ le of this unUed xealm , SKSttS ' **/ ^ PeoPte H inifeeeand equal 2 S £ ^ fenyjnd&eejrexpreBsedttd exec ^ ted . Intta iiemri
4 tf * .,. cap . is , and 6 th of Henrv VI « m ^ emd ^ itistheJaheren ^ inSbTffilJd itf ^ J ^ . *™**"?* ^^ ptacKw of j , rohn of England , add supported hy well ajSS ( gtntes , of every male inhabitant of the Uiuted K 3 n 7 5 £ Sr ! ^ - ^ - ^ , andnol j ^ ned unflCT any judicial process , to exercise the ^ franchise mtte choice of members to serve in H conunons - House ^ of Parliament , for thatwhich ^ eems aft shoul d be approved by alL" An 6 V in 683 4 thofEdwardL , « That the statuteIaw ^ ofthb En ited Kingdom can only devise their force from moral ( Sfctocn upon the popple , ttereof by virtue . of their
ag enartedin a full , free , and equal Parliament ted and chosen by the general voice of the people ^ to gto tteirusage and right ; and tbat tfaeright Brhauienjtotaxthe inhabitants or this realm * lyeo-ordma ^ witli ae universal right to elect afree legual Padiamenfc , andis otherwise disclaimed and jtmdisclaimed . - Ifc r the 7 th of HemylY cm itisenacted "Ifet tbe election of . iSghteof fib tatommfefanenti . ^ ancient pLtfce and ge yestedin thereadent inhabitantsgenerally of the rend counties , and not in the freeholders thereof ex-* omS ^^ men no one wiU dispute with iauthonfaesdenvedfromthe most respectable and floubted sources . . But we are told thrt 1 M « S ffisge would produce universal confusion-thatthe ld
^ e wou " substitute noisy demagogues for an idle Soaacy , " and that , therefore , wehad « better suffer ! iBs J IJS * ?* 11 fly to otneis wetnownot of . " sa who talk ^ of suffering present ills , we presume , snot among the Bcftering classes , and the / only esaflidvowa selfishness in Bowing such a disregard rite missy of others . As to the kind of menwe odd choose , if Universal Suffrage prevailed , that will sdexpenencetotest ; butwhere it has been tried by s descendants of Englishmen , such demagogues as aitongton , Jeneraon , Eranklin , and otters equally irient , seems to cast a doubt upon the prophecy e confusion , too , likely to flow from universal corption would , by the same test , be found moreimaisrWe thanieaL America had an adventurous and
pculative race to begin with , intermingled with mtaandconvicfa from Great Britain ; and for the ft hah' century the poor and-oppressed of all the amtries of Europe have sought and found an asylum iherhospitableshores . The greedy speculators—the aned bankrupt—the broken-down insolvent—and the ! on pursued by justice , have transferred their vices » her soil , but her salutary laws and intentions , stinging from Universal -Snfirage , have enabled her reform , instruct , and purify the mass , and , in despite Ethatblackremnant of kingly dominion—slaverya is the most prosperous and free of all the nations rthe earth , ily Lord and Gentlemen , the great astof England is trialijyJmy ; but -why do we refer the less intelligent Jury to the more intelligent adge ,-who -well knows the law , and is a more com-Etent judge of evidence ; simply because honesty is A always united with , intelligence . We have found it that wealthy and intelligent Judges cannot even be
rusted in a Court of Law , and we arc , therefore , leased to submit to the occasional blunders of an mbiasse d Jury , rather than trusting our lives to a teagning Judge . U men , without responsibility , were Etr ictly virtuous , afew intelligent individuals would be affidenttomake and execute the laws ; but , as they 2 e not so , we endeavour to make them honest , by Baking them accountable and responsible . for their srtions . Gentlemen , land , labour , and capital are the peat sources of wealth . Without land and labour capital would be unproductive ; withojii . capital and &nd , labour could not be employed ; and without labour both land and capital would be useless . Here , { ben , there is a mutual necessity for mutual interests , and being so dependant , each upon the other , justice demands that in all the arrangements necessary for the production and distribution of labour , [ had and capital , equality in legislation , should prenD . But we are told that the capitalists dread the labourers , and therefore will oppose giving them their
tights . We should here stop to ask these veryconfistent gentlemen who talk of virtual representation , ttfcat just cause have Tftig » i « h capitalists hare to dread 9 to oppose the P-nJU ^ laWrrer , more than the American capitalists have to fear the power of Universal Suffrage ? In that country the people find it to be their interest to protect and encourage capital as he best seed for future production . They find it equally Kneficial to remove monopolies and develops their wn resources , taking care that as the public cause is ]< omotedit 8 individual interests shall not suffer . They faow that knowledge is the surest promoter of peace I nd order , and , therefore , they seek to extend it They I fnd that poverty is the most fruitful source of crime , laid , therefore , seek to remove it Do the opponents of
llniversal Sufirage imagine that Englishmen would be lbs wise in pursuing their own interests than the ¦ Americana are ? But , gentlemen , as a last resource , ¦ the opponents to our rights think it necessary to mis-Ikad and misdirect us from our object . They tell us ¦ Oat the repeal of the Com Laws is of much more im-Ipcfrtance than the Suffrage , as it would give cheap ¦ bead , more trade , promote morality , upset the priest-Ibodd , and destroy cant That the Corn Laws are ¦ hi ghly mischievous we admit , but they are only one ot ¦ the ' effects of the great cause we are seeking to remove , land , in justice , we think the question of their repeal ¦ ought to be argued by the representatives of all the ¦ people , and not by a faction . If they had existed so I long that people had forgotten the state of things
preiTious to their enactment , we might be induced to have | fai $ h in all the blessed promises now made us ; but the jejr 1815 is not of very great antiquity , and we think ¦ it only exhibits their selfishness . Gentlemen , want of ¦ property is no proof of the absence of industry , talent , ¦ orvirtue-, then why should a deficiency of fortune anniiKlate a man ' s political consequence ? If an individual ¦ be without property , and not supported by public or ¦ private benefactions , he must , unless he be a robber , ' be ¦ industrious , liut a man of property has no such assis-Itance in his favour . A poor man so circumstanced , Ibis , ' therefore , a much better r ight to vote than a rich I man , on the mere account of contributing to the state . I My Lord and Gentlemen , it must ' now appear to you ¦ Utat the first principles we demand have been practised
as the fundamental basis upon which the institutions of this countiy were erected ; and with regard to I another right which we have petitioned for and de-I mantled as an ancient right is , that Parliaments be I annual- This is nothing but what we can prove I hf ? existed tefore . Gentlemen , we find that before I tfte Conquest , Parliaments were to ba held twice every rear , as appears by the laws of King Edgar , c . 5 , and I a likewise evident by the testimony of the Mirror of I Justice , c l , & 3 , "for the estates of the realm I Kng Alfred caused the Committees ( or representatives I to meet , and ordained for a perpetual usage , they should I assemble at London , to speak their minds for the I guiding of the people of God , how they should keep I themselves from offences , live in quiet , and have right
I done them by certain usages and sound judgments , I "BangEdward I . " ( says Coke . 1 instit foL 97 . ) " kept I a Parliament once every two years , for the most part I And now in this King Edward IIL ' s time , it was I thought fit to enact by these two several statutes , that I * Parliament should be held once at least every year . " I Gentlemen , we find the following proclamation by I Charles , touching the causes and reasons of dissolving the two then last Parliaments , dated April 6 th , 1681 I" Irregularities of Parliaments shall never make us out loflove with Parliaments , which we look upon as the ¦ best method of healing the distempers of the kingdom , ¦ and the only means to preserve the monarchy in that Joue credit and respect which it ought to have both at x ™™ and abroad . Andfot tluBawiseweaieiesolved , bythe blessing of God to have frequent Pariiaments d
, ¦ an both in and out of Parliament to use our utmost ¦ endeavours to extirpate Papery , and to redress all tae Rgnevanres or our good subjects , and in all thingsto ¦ Sorem according to the laws of the ljtogdom . " Mtiov , Gentlemen , here has been a practice adopted for many centuries , not of hofaW ¦ Parliaments every seventh , every third , or even i ^ ery * e £ ' £ ! £ 1 Jkewifie » I ( ma granted by which Bthey might beheid twice or oftener , if required . This His bj no means a new fangled notion of the present Bday anceweSndthat Bofiir back as 1693 , a bill for ti »^ p SH aa >' of , TriomW Parliaments was intro-¦^ W ^ i ^ a «;^ nl > : of . f Shrewsbury , and , in despite of I tfjaTcjpo 5 ition / t of the . Ministers of the day , passed I bflJajHofisesiJ ^ fwas eventually " burked" by the I ra&al ^ theipjil assent In the following year , the I tst ^ ties pf tii& ' GoTfeinmeBt reoumne some extra the
ja ^] fes ^ 3 rai sec »» y to conciliate producers , mj £ dlMWi £ m £ m passed enacting " that a Parffifgf | f foiigMtoM ^ the three years at the least , and ' y ^^ iaihi § e * } wu | i at furthest after the dissolution ' - \ \^^^ t » - tten ^ ibbsisting , and so from time to ^ m 0 mit ^ mt 8 should be issued for the immimmi :
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- _ i I ' ~ 3 i assembling a new Parliament , and that nn u « v shouldcontiuue in existence more thin ^ , " llament the farthest , to be accounted from the fiS 7 em&t - ps ^^ sSHffaKSftt ^ tt-jts-ssa ; stating in the preamble £ t « ? JeLa ? v lament ' S ^ X ?? *• oaly renieay *** ™ S& Srw ^ -. 'ssifsts ^ "SsaKStwix a the present duration of Parliaments . It may Sfore saSSnasrtsiras to cover the defects s assembling a new P ^ ne ^^^^
^ : ^ f * y oft £ esysUm . A n ^ Jittie morettan a century can have nothing due toft on tte score of veneration as a matter of legislation . Tt must be considered as yet in its infancyTTha ^ O . een S 2 i" ? ^ ^^^ the culture thatXerto nSJain . ?^^ " " " 119 31 * ^ ^ S U if ^?™ S ^! 1715 m ^"" y aPPMcable in 1840 . ^ j ^ r ^^ n ^ £ ^ i «? A % ^ 5 * rtfa ! fs EJ * 5 f !! 7 ° «*¦ "iLkableleaSSour riS 7 ' r ^ f mOst " *»* e ^ achments npon Z gs of thepeople have never been made &n £ ' b ^ ofEnghsh parents and possessing Englishfeelings ana habits , but have been perpetrated by forei gner ^ ^ enenced the most severe persecution . I need S 2 V' 2 * ot jiw point , teferto Williamthe fftw ' s ™ L ^ ~ ° ? aftet Sndi 0 « snffident 8 u PP ° rt aTnenmalBm for Parliament And George the First a ^ ffi ^ ^?* 61111181 ^ I" » allusion tothe last %£ ^ t i . biU to enconra Se corruption , I will only ^ J ^ ^ ° / readingher 8 the ' P inion 8 «> f seme of the most patnotic Peers and Commoners of tie realm . 1 allude to the protest of the Peers , which states " we enter our protest , first , because we conceive that frequent and new Parliaments are ' required by the fundamental constitution of the kingdom , and the practice thereof for many ages ( which manifestly appeara by our records ) u a sufficient proof of the Constitution . " A
part of Jfr . Snell ' s argument against . it was t » thefollowmg purport- " this wcrald be to destroy the fence of all then- freedom ; for if we havea righttocontinue ourselves for one year , one month , a day , beyond our triennial term , it will unavoidably follow we have it in our power to make ourselves perpetuaL" My Lord and Gentlemen , i shall next call your attention to the BaL lot , the necessity for which seems to have forced itself nponthe consideration of the people with an earnestness that tells well for its success , and against the adoption of which , the arguments used are more fallacious and trifling'than are those against any other subject before Parliament ; and not one reason can be adduced against which it is not founded on a false or corrupt principle , and of which the assertor himselfwhen
, proved , will shrink from the acknowledgment of . And what , after all , is the gist of the objections raised to it . " It is un-English ; it is not characteristic of a fine , high-minded , glorious people , to shrink from the undisguised avowal of their opinions , and therefore in this country it is unnecessary . " This , Gentlemen , and this alone , is the grand objection to the Ballot , and what is it worth ? But it is un-English ! What ! the Ballot un-English 3 How is it , then , that all the dubs in the countrynay , even the committees of the Parliament itself , are chosen by Ballot ? What ! shall we be told that the adoption of the Ballot will be disgraceful and inexpedient for the people , in the exercise of their moat important right?—and yet that it is just and expedient
in the transaction Of business amongst those who consider themselves , par audience , astheeKfeof society . That the representative must be chosen , by a process which he , having been once chosen , may resort to upon every possible occasion afterwards ? What ! is it not equally un-English when such adopt a process by which they avoid individual exposure and its consequences , on the avowal of their opinions among each other ? And do they then cry out npon the disgracefulness of the Ballot ? Let them , however , remember that if there be any disguce in the adoption of the Ballot , it is themselves who have stigmatised it as disgraceful , and tbat it is among themselves that such disgrace is perpetuated . And , moreover , let them learn tbat nothing is disgraceful that the unanimous voice of the people
demands as necessary for their protection . Gentlemen , the people of this country have other - notions of the Ballot They consider there is no more disgrace in ballot ings for a Member of Parliament , than in balloting for a member of Brookes ' s , or the Reform , or tke Cailton , or any other aristocratic or political club—no more disgrace in so electing a representative than so electing a Governor of the Bank of England , or a Director of the East India Company . There is no more impropriety in so returning a candidate to the House of Commons , than in such members afterward ? so choosing the members of a committee of that House . Oh , no ; disgrace and the Ballot ore by no means syoonvnuras . But if it were disgraceful , which alter all would only be a reflective evil , it is at least expedient
and that , on the other side , is a positive good . Gentlemen , again we argue that the free choice of the electors be thrown open to every grade , extending to class , unlimited by any property qualification . This , Gentlemen , would be no infringement on your rights no violent aggression on your property , as appears by a reference to Scotland , where there is no property qualification for Members of Parliament at the present day . Gentlemen , in the 9 th of Anne , c 5 , we find an Act for securing the freedom of Parliaments , by quali fying the Members to sit in the House of Commons " For the better preserving thp constitution and freedom of Parliament , be it enacted and declared , by the Queen ' s Most Excellent Majesty , by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal .
and Commons , in this present Parliament assembled , and by the authority of the same , that from and after the determination of this present Pariiament , no person shall be capable to sit or vote as a Member of the House of Commons , for any county , city , borough , or cinque port within that part of Great Britain called England , the dominion of Wales , and town of Berwickupon-Tweed , who shall not have an estate freehold or copyhold , for his own life , or for some greater estate , either in law or equity , to and for his own use and benefit , or in lands , tenements , or hereditaments , over and above what will satisfy and clear all incumbrances that may affect the same , and so forth . " From this , Gentlemen , it is clear that there was no qualification for Members of Parliament before the passing of this Act Gentlemen , it often happens tbat great talents are not always associated even with moderate wealth , and that before the required income shall have been gained , the best years of a man's life
) may have rolled away , and the energies and activity that would have rendered him especially useful are deadened , and his faculties cramped in the toilsome search after competence . But , however radical the fact may be , it is nevertheless a fact that wealth and talent are not always combined . Poor men are sometimes as clever and ( what is , we dare say , in the eyes of many , yet more singular ) as honest as the rich . Nay , it has not seldom occurred that those who get into Parliament by the exhibition of a false pass , « r something very like it , have been as consistent to their principles and their party as those woo were more Wealthy , and conld produce an unquestionable title to admission . . Gentlemen , ' while we contend for the abolition of the qualification , we , with equal justice , are in favour of the payment of Members of Parliament We cannot understand why a man should be put to a great expense to serve bis constituents without having something for those services . We find in the 8 th of Henry VI ., c 7 , the following act : —
" Whereas , the elections of Knights of the Shires to come to the Parliaments of our Lord the King in many counties of the realm of England have now of late been made by very great , outrageous , and excessive numbers of people dwelling within the same counties of the realm of England , of the which most part was of people of small substance and of no value , whereof every one of them pretended a voice equivalent as to such elections to be made with the most worthy Knights and Esquires dwelling within the same counties , whereby manslaughters , riots , batteries , and divisions among the gentry and other people of the said counties , shall very likely rise and be , unless convenient and due remedy be provided in this behalf .
" 2 . Onr Lord the King , considering the premises , hath provided , ordained , and established , by authority of this present Parliament , tbat the Knights of the Shires to be chosen within the same realm of England to come to the Parliament of our Lord the King hereafter to beholden , shall be chosen in every county of the realm of England , by people dwelling and resident in ' the same counties whereof every one of them shall have free land or tenement to the value of 40 s . by the year , or at the least above all charges . " 3 . And . that they which shall be so chose shall be dwelling and resident within the same counties . " 4 . And such as have the greatest numbers of them , tbat may expend 40 s . by year and above , as afore is said , shall be returned by the Sheriffs of every county Knights for the Parliament , by indentures sealed betwixt the said Sheriffs and the said choosers so to be made .
" 5 . And every Sheriff of the realm of England shall have power by the said authority to examine , upon the Evangelists , every such chooser , how much he may expend by the year . " 6 . And if any Sheriff returns Knights to come to the Parliament contrary to the said ordinance , the Justices of Assize , in tnsir Sessions of Assizes , shall hare power by the authority aforesaid , thereof to enquire .
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" 7 .. And if ; by inquest , ; tof ' safiftf be foUlM before the Justices , and the 8 Herin ?* Jthera (! f ; be duly attainted , that then the said Sherift ' iiJBiliJineiir the pain of an hundred pounds , to be prid ^ put ^ Iiord the King , and Jllso that he have imprisonment by'the year , ' without being let to bail or mavnprize . . --M *' " 8 . And that the Knights for the Parliament returned contrary , to the said ordinance , shalllose their wages . " Here , Gentlemen , there is a proof that Members of Parliament were paid for their labow in former days , and why not now ? Every man ought to have a fair nay ' s wages for a fair day's -work . Bnt at present , many of the Members of Parliament are in such a dependant condition , that , with a < 2 egra *» g servility to ^ : * ' — . Z ^ .
the Ministers of the day , they an ? perpetually ingratiating themselves in the g « od graces of the Government for the sake of situations for themselves and their needy constituents and families . 3 By Lord , ' and Gentlemen of the Jury * I have now gon * through the five principal points of the People ' s Charter , and I defy any man to prove them to be unjust or sneonatitutional . And if this present movement should fail , before another half century England will cease to be a first-rate nation , and she wiU be lost in the long eight of obscurity , and , like others which have gone before her , the foreigner will come upon her , - and the peopie , reasoning like the jackass in the fable , will refuse to defend a land in which they have no share . Whete now is Carthage ? Its very seat is not to be foundl Troy ? Sunk under the waters . And Venice ?
" Behold her lost and won ; Her thirteen hundred years of feeedora done , Sunk , like a sea-weed , from wfceaee she sprung . " So , Gentlemen ; will it ^ - ^ h England , if she does not grant the people that reform wbiefcis essential to the happiness of the nation at larga- Gentlemen , if anything new is added to the old remaking fragments of the common law , have we not a righfc to examine them with care and suspicion ? What can we ever know of the ancient forms of the constitution , except by meeting together and exchanging mutual opinions ? Yet this is the only offence tbat I have swmnitted . For this , Gentlemen , and for this alone , I wiis dragged out of bed in the dead of the night , from a lsvteg wife and four helpless children—my house ransacked
, robbed , and plundered by a band of hired roffians , under the command of the Superintendent of Police , and kept on a cold , flagged floor , naked and barefooted for a considerable while , guarded by three ruffian ^ with swords and pistols . My wife searched—searched!?—Yes , Gentlemen , " I could a tale unfold that maid harrow up your souls . " But , Gentlemen , let us turn from this disgusting scene . Gentlemen , as the indictment charges me with seditiously attempting to stir ap a dissatisfaction in the minds of her Majesty ' s subjects , we will next enquire into the meaning of the word " sedition . " Were the question of its meaning put to me , I would answer in a few words that sedition is aa indefinite term , applicable only to those who have ths virtue and the courage to oppose arbitrary and usurped
powers , and consequently carries no degree of approbrium with it "The scourge of society is adulation . '" It shuts the door to hope : it is a national calamity -which every day threatens new evils , when the op . pressions of the people are artfully concealed from the Sovereign . It prepares them but for heavier burdens ; the most touching grrans public misery utters are Construed into murmurs ; the most just and respectful remonstrances adulation interprets into punishable temerity ; and the impossibility any other name than rebellion and the want of loyalty . Adulation is the sedition to be deplored , and which merits judicial punishment ; but as this construction on its meaning may not be very grateful to the ears of the Counsel for the pro secution , we will take up the words in his own point
of view , namely , that the words said to have been uttered , had a tendency to a breaeh of the peace We have the authority of Lord Camden , who , for equanimity and integrity has not been excelled or seldom equalled by any tbat has preceded or followed him , " that words are not a breach of the peace ; it tends to the breach of the peace , and that is the utmost ; but that which only tends to a breach of fhe peace cannot be a breach of it . " The same Nob le Lord has expressed " that what is law will be found in our books ; if it is notto be found there , it is : not law . " Where , I would ask the Counsel for the prosecution , can be found the statute that shall convince you , Gentlemen of the Jury
that the words saidto have been uttered were seditious ? Had Locke written and published his Treatise on Government , or Blackstone his Commentaries On OUT laws under the present system of Government , with the present system of carrying on prosecutions , they would have been charged with " constructive sedition , " and had to encounter the vindictive spirit of the tools of corruption , who are at the head of the present prosecutions . Gentlemen of the Jury , the time and circumstances have arrived at which these writers have said that resistance weuld be justifiable , Gentlemen , we have lived to see theMagna Charta utterly abolished —our boasted BiU of Bights repealed—the Act of Settlement violated—the Habeas Corpus Act suspended
—and every wholesome law that was founded in common or by statute law wholly annihilated . Our ancestors have imagined this ? Could they have anticipated that what they had fought and bled for would have been taken from a future race without even a straggle for it ? No ; therrecords of their noble deeds . stanzas momu meats of out degeneracy . The well paid hirelings of deceptionare endeavouring to inculcate that anything to liberate ourselves from the state of wretchedness and misery would pronounce a state of anarchy ; and thus they strive to stifle moral , resistance by doctrines of passive obedience and baser servility . But , in opposition to their vicious and sordid views , I would exclaim that aturpid independence is preferable to a life of slavery j for in the former a sense of personal dignity is felt—a manly Bpirit follows , and courage and talent is the consequent result—but in the latter , man i 3 degraded and tendered jealous and suspicious Of his fellow man .
Real sedition is not to be found anywhere in the country but amongst her Majesty ' s Ministers and managers and defenders of the present . prosecutions . So base and inhuman has been thoir conduct , tbat human nature and honesty shudders to think of it I allude to thbir arrests and their well-known and avowed practice of employing not only spies and informers , but agitators to induce the people to violate their odious and oppressive laws , for no other purpose than to produce some apparent necessity for their own despotic views and pract ices . Gentlemen , these men will be held up as persons deserving the execration of the present and future ages . Here are the men that have stirred up dissatisfaction in the minds of her Majesty's subjects-Gentlemen , as I am publicly accused of being a wicked and evil disposed person , I will take the liberty of reading-to you my character as sent to this Court last August , when I was arraigned on this indictment : —
" The memorial of the undersigned inhabitants of the Borough of Stockport , on behalf of Isaac Johnson . We ; theundersignedinhabitantsofStockport , doknow the prisoner to be a strictly honest , sober , and most industrious man . Therefore , for the excellence of his character , and the very short time he had been connected with the'Chartists * agitation , we humbly implore the Court to award the mildest sentence in its power to inflict upon him . —( Signed ) Lawrence , Doran , alderman of Stockport ; Thomas Booth , couioWbr for Stockport ; alderman F . Cheetham ; . Isaac " ^ oss , alderman of Stockport ; GeorgeOldfield , councillor for Stockport ;
W illiam Brierley , councillor ; for Stockport ; John Clarke , flour dealer ; Thomas Robertson , councillor for Stockport ; CharlesRedfern , councillor for Stockport ; Thomas Stifoll , councilman ; William Charloswortb , councilman ; James Waring , -councilman ; William Oldfield , engineer and smith ; Robert Cheetham , cotton spinner ; Joseph Cheetham , cotton spinner ; Isaac Jones , flour dealer ; Jereiiiah Boothby , cabinet maker ; David Parkinson , district bank ; Thomas Hudson , flour dealer ; Thomas Heywood , flour dealer ; John Cawley , draper ; John Robinson , ironmonger and founder ; for . whom the prisoner has worked about ten years . Win . Lawrence . "
•• I hereby wish to certify that Isaac Johnson , now a prisoner in the castle of Chester , was apprenticed t » me as a smith for seven years , and he served his time faithfully and honestly , i feel for h'ra in his present situation , and pray the merciful consideration of the Court in his favour . ( Signed ) William Oldfield , Messrs . Cans , Stockport August 14 , 1839 . " Here , Gentlemen , is a character signed by some of the most respectable inhabitants of the borough of Stock * port , at the time that I was confined within the walls of this gaol . This , and this alone , is sufficient to prove that I am not the evil disposed person that I am represented to be in that indictment It is signed , Gentlemen , by two of my old masters , one of whom I served seven years , and the other ten . Gentlemen ef the Jury
one of the witnesses has sworn that I said " I nave seen a person attending this meeting with something in his breast It was a dagger , and if any person molests me , I will lay him prostrate at my feet" Gentlemen , there never was a greater falsehood than this . The witness knows that neither I nor any other individual used these expressions at that or any other meeting . Gentlemen , I am also charged with moving the following resolution — "That it is the opinion of this meeting that every Chartist in the borough of Stockport and surrounding districts do attend our parish church for divine service on Sunday next" Gentlemen , I am proud to say that I did move that resolution , and that there never was such a numerous and peaceable congregation within the walls of that edifice , in my indictment I am also accused of having made use of the following expressions — " What do you think of tbe black slugs , for we were at church on Sunday , and the black slug took his text"What aoall we do to be saved ?'" Gentlemen , really
this is gross nonsense , and deserves derision more than attention , contempt more than a patient hearing . Again , it states that I said " they begin to be afraid of us , but we will tell them in less than six weeks we will have our rights . " Gentlemen , who are they that begin to be afraid of us—who are they we will tell—and what rights are they that we will have ? Really , the thing is top contemptibleito waste your valuable time upon . The next expression that I am stated to have used is " you must get your arms ready and keep your powdor dry , for the day of struggle is at hand . " My Lord and Gentlemen of the Jury , if 1 had thought it necssary , 1 ceuld have brought a score of witnesses who would have proved that 1 never used the language sworn to have been uttered by me t but knowing that the witnesses were brought against me were hired men , selected from tho lowest of the lowest dregs of society , renegade , political agitators , and men of such notoriously profligate , character , that no honest jury \ ro \\ W place
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¦ " •—i "Saa—¦ ' •** ' ' " » . i njii t _ n i _ g t Sn , fM Sh ii ! i eliance on «« eir oath , and knowing that I ? S 1 O : t t d ChesWre J"y . comprised of ^ friSi % ° se honesty' integrity , humanity , and 5 af ^ T no V ° be escelled b r >' countr * EngjaifepLord and Gentlemen of the Jury , I am r ^ S ^ ° catinff the ri S"t of possessing arms to Sl « 7 ^ Property . I did then at it « 3 ft " m ™?* 6 the ri Sbt of possessing arms . nrSiHnf ' n ^ foll y t 0 declare tbat S to 2 X ? liborty ' pr ° p e ^ an ( l to iif e . ™ i ^ v « S ? rivilese of obtainin g and protecting their privileges whenever thoy may be stolen or at tacked .. Phy « cal resistance can only be carried on by the use of arms offensive and defensive , and the right to possess these instruments of security is one clearly established . by the British constitution . The ancient 3 nton *| jHpescribed as a moat warlike people , dwel" '' ^ ' ^ ...
« HS ips . aim always accompanied by their swords tbeirgofernment wa * a military democracy , and every man was a warrior . The Saxons delighted in martial encountera , and as eatn member of the community arrived at a mature age , he was presented in a general assemMy with a shield and a short spear . The Danes were edehrated for their Management of tho sword lance , andI axe , and it was » vow with every freeman to die wiSharmsin their ha ^ & After their subjiigationby Alfred the Great , they , together with the nrt of his subJt » t 8 , were carefully » med , and had assigned to them a regular round of duty , and the whole kingdom was hi * one garrison , There was also an annual meeting of e «» y hundred , when the people assembled hi arras , wheffiw a hundred was gometimes called a
wapentake , aa « its court served fw the' support of afttary discipline , as well as the adWiristration of ' BStice . Our aneBstors wore at this tirae ' inuieii addicted to |» chase , and though after the Nwmuw conquest thfc )? leasurewas aiost unjustly restrain ^ yet their arnw were left tor them for nobler proposes . The feudaST system was , , fa fact , the art of offensive and defeifttore warfare , afiflj every man under ite = rTito . ms a soldie * Now came into fashion the Blinge * s , areikrs , andcrcre-bowmen , a « Hnow we hear of a ebmpfaint that ev&r / raan wasoKigfed to purchase for hinted ! his own ansoar , accordingtfe . lu 8 circumstances , feu 1 fea < l of having j * found for him . An ordinance of Henry II . sets forifctflhat •< every ftgeman V who possessed goods and chattel ^ to the value off sixteen marks should ; hW
a ooat of wm , a helmet , » shield , and a lance ? m& > everjrfttemstt . possessed often marks should h » ea > body artoourf of leather , fenced * with iron ; an iron cap-, and alance ; . seed every .: burge » of the whole comminitiy should have a-osat of defence matfe of leather only , aw ironcaWamd » lance , which armour they were f <» :-bidden ^ sell ov pawn on pain ofi severe penalty . " By au ordinance offffidwardl . i "every man from fifteen to sixty , is to hawe-arm ' s accordin g to his land and chattels ; and alls who . possess to t *» amount of forty pence shall have ISUs , giearras , dagger * , and commoner arms , and others-who icpuld should havea bow and arrows . " By the J 3 th < : Edward I ; ,, constables were elected to inspect tHe arms of the peopie twice a year , to see that they we « kept in due ordtur and ready for
service , and to presaa * all defaulters . By the 13 th o Henry IV ; , justices and sheriffs were- empowered tof eall for the assistant of all knigfite , gentlemen , yeomen , and labourer ^ servants and apprentices , who were all bound by the statute of Winolester to have harness or armour . By the 33 d of Henry Till ., every man was bound to possess himself of suchiarms as were then in use , and a master was bound to 2 od arms for his labourers , and to stop the cost of them' wit of their wages . Queen Elizabeth ,, in au address to- the Parliament , said , " you that be ' lieutenants and gentlemen of command in you * « ounties > I request you to > take care that the people be well aimed and in readiness upon all oeeasions . " The BiU ofiBights claimed expressly for the-people the privilege of having arms for thatt defence
, suitable to their condition aad degree , and tfiis right was granted iu express term * by one of the first statutes passed after , the revojutjton . Sir John Fortosoue says , " It is the duty of all men to have arms . " My Lord and Geatleinen of the Jury ,, Lord John RussbII has acted upon ithe legal right » J arming ; he ha » gone further ; he has called upon the middle classes-to take up arms . Against whom ? . Against their own . eustomers ? Yes : and against'tawe upon whose labour they irfe- ^ He has ever suppHed them with arms- gratuitously , and then laid the fixsndation for one o « . the most terrible evils in sopiety—a , breach which it ' will require a long flight of years . to heal , and all this he has done on the , legal right of anaiag . Young says that " where the Government only is armed , there
dtespotism . is 'established ; " and Fletcher says , "to bear anna i 3 the distinction between a freeman ) and a slave . " : My Lord and Gentleiu « svof the Jury , there is . a strong- national principle implanted in men ' s bosoms that induces them to resist oppression . Thi * xs intended for the wisest purposes . If ' a man ware tamely to submit to every outrage inflicted upon him —if he werenot to raisa iip the . haod of resistance and rebellion against those who tyrannise over him , h * would be the most-wretched and futile creature under the sun . To deny him this power i % to deny that whieh the meanest animal , possesses . Even the very worm turns against thefoot that treads npon it It is not necessary that there should be any rea 3 oningprocess here —instinct alone is quite sufficient to guide our
movements and ^ con duct under , such circumstances . Gentle ^ men , of the maw of ' the - peopUTsee- a small fraction of theirJbody . - . deg «^ B ng , . plun d ering , fij ^ MJ ^ g , ' and inV suiting the whoJie ' cwnmunity , would noktliat ' mass bit criminal in the highest degree to look indifferently and coolly on their own destruction ? Rulers , under whatever name , are but tho servants of the people ; and would it not be a great anomaly to see tie servant possessed with absolute power of life , and death , over the masters . The whole class of public virtues , such as t public spirit / heroic zeal , love of liberty , and the like , must be a dead letter , if we have not the power of open resistance to profligate governments . Those virtues can have no scope " from '' that exercise amongst » clan of savagea , or a band of slaves , under the whip of a
master . My Lord and Gentlemen of the Jury , the usual argument urged against the doctrine of a right of resistance is , that it tends to make a people restless , disaffected , and rebellious . Now , this is grounded on a great fallacy . In the first place " , nothing but disaffect ion and rebellion can possibly spring from - unqualified despotism ; therefore , the people are not placed in a worse condition by any supposed change . In the second place , it is a well known fact , grounded on the most extensive experience , that mankind , in the mass , are never inclined for physical opposition to any form of government , without those be for great arid deeprooted corruption in it Scarcely any single attack upon theirliberties , howeverpointed , willarouse them into activeresistance . ltisonlywhentheyseealongtrainofaouses
and feel the heavy pressure of one act of tyranny after another , that they become alive to a sense of their danger , and see the necessity of placing tho legislative powers in such bands ' as will- effectually secure to them the benefit of good and just government In the third point of view , it may be affirmed that the right of resistance is the only security against open rebellion and anarchy . AU tyranny and oppression are really and properly aids of open rebellion , ' because their natural tendency is to divert the legislative power of a country from , the object it was founded to accomplishthat of promoting the public good . , 'When legislators violate public principles of liberty , " they are guilty of open rebellion ; : for the people at-large can have no security for life and property without that protectien
which these principles afford them . Such law-makers take away a power which none but the people can r ightly exercise ; and such law-makers set up their own authority in opposition to that of the people ' s , for whose benefit they were especially and solely appointed . Thus we see that the charge of rebellion may always be justly laid to the charge of those who , - under the cloak of legislation , who sap the foundations of public liberty , and expose the people to all the miseries of misrule and despotism . My Lord , and Gentleman of the Jury , Mr . Locke observes , "whenever the Legislature endeavours to take away and destroy the property of tie people , as to / reduce them to slaves , under arbitrary power , they put themselves in a state of war with the people , who are , therefore , absolved
from any future obedience , ' and are left to the common refuge which ; God hath provided for all men against force and violence . " " Sir William Jones says , " votes without armi--thel , right of resistance , without the power—are as useless as artillery without ammunition . " Gentlemen , it . is absolutely necessary for a free people to have arms . ' ' lit France and . Araorica the principle is admitted and . acted upon ; : out in England all the old laws on this subject have been violated , and only the squires , tie aristocracy , and the middle class are recognised by the law * as having a fullfand unchecked right to be armed to the teeth . Gentlemen , tie going through military evolutions or exercises was , for the first time , declared by Castlereagh , in 1819 , a heineus offence , punishable by transportation for seven
years , aud the Whigs have taken good care to let this enactment remain upon the Statute Book . We are the only nation in Europe , ( perhaps in the world , and this is a fact worthy of tie most attentive consideration ) which is afraid to entrust the body of the people with arms , and the only nation which has made the going through military evolutions a crime . Considering tho revolutions which steam navigation has made in warfare—the narrowness of the sea which divides us from nations with which we have almost always been at war —the eagerness of , and the unscrpulous expedients resorted to by . a powerful party in this country , to embroil us with Russia—the ambition of that power—our deficiency in fortresses—that our' towns , even en the sea-coast ate defenceless , it deserves serious deliberation whether it is a politic course to disarm the people of defensive . weapons , and to make any attempt to
teach the knowledge of military exercises a transportable offence . / As for the right ef keeping arms in one ' s own defence , this was never at any period called into question : yet , in Warwickshire , Yorkshire , Lancashire , aud Cheshire ,. . - men's houses have been searched for arms , aud ' , if any are found , they are not only seized , but the owners are carried to gaol . ' Whether such proceedings are according to law or against it , is immaterial ; . it onlyequallyprovea tie progress of . despotism .. Gentlemen , such apolitical change , as I contend for ,, is sanctioned by the constitutienal usages of England ,, and in this opinion I am borne out by the testimony o £ the late Secretary of State ; for , in a speech delivered in Oct . 1838 , at Liverpool , he expressed himself to tfris effect ' Speaking of the Chartist meetings , ie said , " -There were some perhaps who would put down such agetfmgs , but such was not his opinion , nor t thnt of ti » Government with which he acted . It was free discussion that elicited tmtU . tiey toad a rigU to vm \ » it ti » y toft
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grievances , tieyhad a right to declare them that they iDJght bo known and redressed ; if theyliad no grievances , common sense would speedily come to the rescue , and put an end to those meetings . It was not from fr « e discussion—it was not from tho unchecked declarations of public opinion , that Government bnd anything wliatover to fear . There was fear when men trere drivon by fear to form secret combinations ; there was the fear—there was the danger , and not in free discussion . " In another speecu he said , " It is the nature of the people to pu » h ohedienco almost to a fault . Nothing can be more fabe than the opinion of those who maintain that agitators can easily , and without cause , excite tho people totnmultaeus and seditious practices . So far from thia- being the case , the disposition of every people is hostile to ' — i"
agitators ; indeed , it is SO Strongly in favour o £ Goternrnent , that tho general mass of the country can never beimfaced to see abuso until it becomes intolerable- - nay , wMse , they will frequently even submit to tiw greatest evils of inisgovernment before they venture to ' uttor oritfword in their behalf . IS fe my persuasion isaidheltM ^ Ub ^ eBof Englishi ^ nXS upon the general consent of all , 11 IBS * remain upon that basis , o * lnust altogether cease to- have any existence . We cannot confine liberty in this country to one class of ins * ; , we cannot create he » 3 Senate of Venice , by wlmb a small part of the eomraumty is enabled to lord rfover the majority , we c ~ at this time and in thi "
* loud , make liberty ttoTSShS of a caste . I shall , now draw your attentions to a still fcgher authority . Mi ; ( nOw Sir John , Campb . ll , her Majesty ' s Attorney- € ten « ral , in his defend of Mr Ssnrael Cooke , in 182 * ,. expressed himself allows ' —" CJentlemen , Engfolimenhave aright to ea&rtain ana esqpress their strong atifl decisive opinions wife respecfc to all public affair * . That is a right wh&b we have inherited from our ancestors , bought , amongiotiher thing *; , at the price of ttieiir blood , and I hops- we shall preserve that right purer , and I hope we snail tran 8 mn * iil > to posterity unbraftwi . " I shall now quote a high authority , whose legal- knowledge and public spirit I iwesame will be duly' appreciated by you . 5
mean Mn- ( now Baron ) teney who , on thetr ial of ftatiel -Isaac Catonv stated that " th * first politJbat truth that is « engraven on th * soul of ma « i- is , 'that all power flows from the people , and 3 ^» trust for their bonefft ; and when that trust is . abusedv'jreslatance is no * only aright ; but 'a i duty . Gentle&ea , I will now reatfyom an extract from the rules of tke Working Men ' s Association , which have been adopted by most of the AVswriations in the MDgdom , and bjJ ' wlich you may judge-of the general principles of Chartism :- " Let not , however , tho men of wealth imagine that we have ulteriordesi gns inimical Jto tteir rights , or -news opposed to' « he peace and Harmony of society . &a the contrary , weseek to render property more srcui * -life more sacred-and to pre-» i * w * hiviolate any iissfeitation tbat can bVmade to con .
tribute to the happiness of man . Wo-only seek that shane m tie ¦ institutions and' governments our country - wiiici our industryand usefulness so-rioWy merit " Sudb » the language o * rational Chartism * and such , withi a- few violont exceptions , are their ^ onBy objects . Gentlemen , all the journals of 1831 advosated the righfcof arming to resist tSe Government The leading articles- were headed " tmion , " " arms , " "reform " " organicand arm . " Have 1 ever used ' lfcteuageis strong , as- this ? and did not O'Connell threaten the Tories-iirtt&his " seven millions ? " and did H * not say - " whatdo you think o # rowing boats-in . human blood , o » i » marching down the people to the Hosse of Parliament , and strewing the fields with gore-and tie carcasse * ofi the enemy ? " inuSdid not Mr . CoppooR , the present town-clerk of Stockport represent the Queen
, Dowager as-tbe wife of an old sea captain on boaid of a crazy old ; -water-logged vessel encouraging rate > aud other vemritti but ; the sooner it'was cleared the better ? and did ho .- n « t threaten to oTOrturn the Government by stoppiug . the supplies ? But still I must own ( Jhat his words audi his threats would have littlo or no effect upon those thaiiare at all acquaindid with his character ; andtheGafosftwd Observer remisded Queen Adelaide that , for doing ; what she was doing , a fairer headithan hera had rolled upon the scaffold . Gentlemen , when I think on thejldnguage that has beea used by Bainesj . at Leeds , Bradshaw , at Canterbury , atfd others ; who-have not only beemaUowed , but encoussged . I am really astonished to > think that Government Bhould have passed by suoh men as these to prosecute a poor illiterate
, , uneducated , working man ' like me . But it shows sufficiently that something ib » wrong , and ; the Bysteminustibeanaied , Gentlemen , whanl welghandconaider in my owmmind the position ofi this country , at the present momeat-when I look at the proeeeds-oC the great body oil the people , there is * much , in : my opinion , to be feared , and much to be hoped , from . the progress of politioal opinion at the present moment . Yes , Gentlemen , there is much to be hoped from the spirit of an united psople , a spirit capable -of , conceiving * and an energy fearful enough to execute , plans for the regeneration of this- mighty nation . Thereii muoh to-be feared from a Government contriving for this country a plan of centralisedi oppression . The under .: currents of opinion which haro been flowing for some time past , : are separating themeslves , and remaining , counter , to
tho uppercurrenta . on secial and political matters ;; but :. the great changes whieh are daily taking place iiv our ; social and commerGiaLselations will speedily-verge these J two into one > ' common stream , whose force will be ; irresistible . This wiB be brought about mainly in consequence of the vast improvements which are taking i place in all classes o £ society . Gentlemen , I am . surprised at the present moment when in all things we . are advancing , as a people , to see the strongest measures resorted to-tesuppressandrosist tie extension of political privileges to the people . Yes-j Gentlemen , ingenuity and discovery still will march in tie van of improvement Having , placed to ourselves first aad foremost amongst nations , way should one class be left behind , to whoso-labour i 3 to be imputed the gigantic strides of incentive- power
and improvement . But , Gentlemen , I - can look forward with pleasure to the day when tie cap of liberty shall sit on every brow—that emblem of liberty which our forefathers held moat sacred . In ancient Rome ; if a slave had saved the life of a citizen , or had performed a service to the State , he received , as a reward , his freedom ; and on bis emancipation from slavery , he had a cap placed on his headasan emblem of his liberty . Our Saxon forefathers , when they emancipated , a-slave , gave him perhaps a more appropriate emblem . They , onbestowinguponhimhis liberty , placed a sword by his side , and a spear in his hand , as the most proper appendages with which to protect and defend that blessing they had bestowed upon him . I know that liberty is dear to every mau . It is dear to mo . I have over contended for it ; and I will add , in the beautiful sentiment of the
Poet" He who contends for freedom , can never b » justly deemed his Sovereign's foe . " It was for freedom I have contended , and I will ever continue to do so , even at the risk of my life . I -would always impress on my fellow-countryman the love of that national liberty which had been the pride andthe boast of their forefathers . What is it that the Chartists ask for ? Not for a distribution of property . No , that is a base and slanderous calumny of those who profit by things as they are , had forged to damage our cause . There never was the slightest foundation for such a charge , although Judges on the Bench , and Parsons in the Pulpits have not scrupled to give currency to the falsehood . But we do demand an equal participation of rights—that is what we claim , aud we found our claim on that great constitutional principle , tiatno man siould be taxed without his consent My Lord and Gentlemen of the Jury , it is far from me
and I should never wish to see , I have never desired to see , and I never do expect to see , any great principle of reform gained or established in this or any other country , by means of either- sword , pike , pistol , or dagger . I never did wish to see a great change achieved by tie ue& of tiese weapons , or by revolutionary violence , or by civil commotion . If we consult the evidence of history , we shall find that in all such cases the freedom which we so highly prize , and which I hope to see gained , has been hunted down by military despotism . But the war tuat has been commenced now—prosecutions and imprisonments—a war against principles , and , I may add , . against individuals too . This is pressing on the chariot of Reform , and who now can stop its progress ? Gentlemen , tie prospects are cheering—the result is certain —the fields are ripe for the harvest—liberty , equal rights and equal laws shall be the portion of our fatherland . We shall live to sec tho arfcizan an A
mechanic remunerated for their labour—we shall again see tie peasantry happy and joyful—crime-shall be dispelled by virtue—dissipation by sobriety—ignorance by knowledge—starvation by plenty—and tyranny siall iide its hated and dishonoured head—despotism shall sink in tbe nethermost hell from wience it sprung —our young men aud maids shall be- blest in their youth , and those who have patiently tirodden the path of life and persecution together shall not tremble at tho thoughts of separation in their declining days . Yes , Gentlemen , the voice of freedom is now upon every passing breeze , and who will stop the whirlwind or dare to impede its progress ? Gentlemen , I have suffered already in this glorious cause * 1 have been arrested , iniprisonod , and held in excessive bail for this chaTge . But , Gentlemen , time -will add strength to the cause—years will bring the harvest home—and thus the efforts of oppression will defeat herself . Yes , and we shall be handed down to posterity as martyrs in this glorious cause . Our names will be-associated with the
Tells , the Washingtons , and all tbe patriots of this and other ages , whose names shall be a watchword till the future shall be free . My LorcL and Gentlemen of tie Jury , wiile I thank you for the attention you have bestowed upon me , and believing that you never will pronounce me guilty of this paltry charge ; but , if you siould , I beg to say that I shall retire cheerfully within tie walls of this prison ,, knowing . that . I have been prosecuted for certain electioneering purposes ,, and because I have presumed ; to assert , and am now prepared . to demand ,. tho extension of those rightsto the . working classes of this countxy . which their forefathers possessed . I retire , therefore ,, iu the hope that I shall yet live to . see those principles carried into execution in th& country . With these ideas I can -with pleasure re ^ oto my cell , hosing that I shall yet live to see ( hut if . xot v my children will ) that happy day when England ^ shall be what sb ^ ought to be—happy , prosperous avid free . Gentlemftu . of . the Jury , tio law considers ypuA&ie-tiie judges , in . thls case , and therefore you wiiljwlgf t for yous ^ y ^ . wit haut taking any notice what « wr .- « £ wliat
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= — - „ i may have been , or may bBi ndvanced on this opinion or that opinion . I only Beak to repair our old constitution , and make it a facsimile of the sentiments of the people at large . I shall now losve ? my case in your hands , knowing Ml well that I shall teeeiye a verdict of acquittal from you . The Jury having returned a Vttdlcf ? of "gnMy , ' Johnson -was sentenced to twelve momift' imprisonment , to find sureties , himself in £ 200 amf sW ' ; sureties in £ 100 each , to keep the peace for two yeSJft , C 0 K 3 HIUCY AND RIOT . . cg ^ ^ ¦ . . - ¦
-I-John Slubbs , William JJarnelt , Charte Savsge , Wtlham Zowef John Weaver , William Jadm , mi Reginald Richardson were ( with the exception' of tha latter , who has been convicted at Liverpool' )! ar * rai ' gned" on an indictment for conspiracy and jfibt a £ Macolesfield , on ehe 22 nd of July and the 12 Sfr of " August . The whole of them , with the exception of Weaver , pleaded © uilty ? and they were discharged ! on their own recognizances of £ 100 each , to appeal to receive judgment when called upon . ' Weaver was then' ordered to-be taken down to * await his trial , as he expressed Ms intention of defeating himself . .
CONSMKMT . / awes Duke , of A&hton , and John Livesey , of ManBbester , pleaded not guilty to au indictment charging them with conspiracy . There was a third person-mcluded , George Lloyd : , who was not in custody . The AtfTORNEY-GENEiwE . and Mr . Welsby appeared fo » the prosecution ? Livesey was widefended . ihe evtttence m this case Waa prinoipaBy of a documentary character , with a View to connect the defendantsirith Thompson , of Birmingham JHitchell , ot htockport Tand two othors ^ vho wero cwwicted atthe lastassiws of conspiracy and unlawM possession of arms :- Now , it appeared that on searching some letters aft Thompson's , ons was fbvmd to Livosey a naudwrrtJnit , ordering some eumi .. iwrf . M « .
lusees , fow ling ^ , &c ; whilfet that brougS t 5 ! wift $ n D , r . his having ,, in conduction ; j With MDoualUigned a guarantee fof £ & Ifts , to ^ ompson , for fire-arms sent to' Timothy Hig » i » . , o * Ashton , who atoo was included' and convtotei uponthe indictment affecting Miifchell ; - Thompson , ; a » d Davies . 1 Robt . Newton , cpdBtable of Ashtoavsaidithatatf tft * tltneof the Chartist ' agitation , Duke-was a-publicaa r ai # hat town and an active Chartist ^ -and-that h » admitted signing tbe guarantee hi' question' for nisgins . Riofcard Beswick , dfcputy constable of Mttnchesteriflrwluced the fire-awaa and ammunUfon'found im Livteay » house , in Han » ver-street ,. I&ftehester ,. a& thepen © dof his appreKenaion in August last . Jsaeph Sadler produewi the documents found at Thowpaoa's , of Birmingham ; and also opfcke aboufc the&o * a > mns found atftSNsebeirs and thV other in . July .-Mr , ' . Sa » d Reddish , cleite > tothe County Madsmovdo vioi Juriuuswiwu
- « uR . | ,, mai oetwiBBn- May and AaguBt , the town wao' in a very agitated' and disturbaa-atate , in consequence of the frequent meet--ing of the Chartists , which / ' greatly alarmed thepeaceabli- inhabitants . Special constables * werasworn i » j ; arol he was 8 worn » in by his own solicitation ^ Rio-te took place undoubtedly ; and there wasconsiderable- apprehension that danger would arisefrom the observance of the Sawed Month in Aug . Directions were in conseq ^ encs given for th * search--mg and seiaire of fire-arms . Mr . CoTjiKGaAM . onbehalfofQokejsbortly . butverr confidently contended that no case of conspiraerhadi been made oufc against his clienty . who was a perfects stranger to tBe other defendant . Nb arms had been found in his possession , nor any legal document t © show that there was common unlawful design subsisting betwesa them . As to the guarantee ^ , it was merely to p ayja certain sum for goods- furnished to other parties as a matter of business ..
Tie Arroiuisir-GENERAL submitted that the partieshad acted together in pursuance of a-common dflsiga .. There was therefore , a case for the- J 4 ry , Lvreey . ' not being a regular gun seller , but a » worker in & * factory . His LoRssHitfsammed up the evidences He-admitted the right of persons to havo asms fordawful purposes ; but be- did not think that parties whor procured . them by dozens , could havo aiiproper object ( in view . As to eonspiracy , it was not necessary-• that the defendants should be personally known to » each other ; a conspiracy for a commcitobject mighfc i take place at a great distance through the-Postoffice , and there must be more tlraau one conicerned . : The Jury returned a verdict of auiltw .
' The defendants were subsequently sentenced to > ' . twelve months imprisonment each . After which to enter into their owa recognizance of jMOOyand find two in £ 50 , to keep the peace for three years , and ; to > be further imprisoned until suob . bailie-found .
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Whb "Wife of Many Husbands . —On Friday last ,., died , aged 40 , the wife of Mr ^ R . Mann , saddler- and landlord of the Three Pigeons public-house , in , Btoford . She maraied four husbands by the time she-was thirty yearaold , and has left behind * her . an excellent character for industry and all tie domestic virtues . —Oxford Joarnal . Ma . Batty has recently purchased-from ± he Marqui&of Waterford tfie far-famed lions captured by the Marquis in Tunis . These noble animals-are now full grown , possess flowing manes of the blackest , dye-,, and are said to- be the largest and finest ever seesiiu this kingdom . The Marquis tamed . them , to follow him through the demesne at Cumhmore , and . they have frequently taken up their quarters at night in-bia bed-room .
Tee : late Elopsment . —The greatest ! sympathy continues to be expressed for Mr . Barrattj .. "whowas sentenced to fifteen months' imprisonment for eloping with Mis 9 Ellis . A petition , signed by allth * borough magistrates ( witi only one exception )* av great majority of the Town Council , and ISO of the most influential audirespectablo inhabitants of Stamford and its vicinity , has been forwarded to the Secretary of State for the Home ¦ Department ,, praying for a commutation of his sovere- sentence . Execution of the Stafford Bdfti » H 2 K >—The execution of Owen and Thomas , for the murder of " Ciristina Collins , took place in front ofr the Gounty Gaol , Stafford , on Saturday , a confirmation of the respite in favour of Ellis having been received by the Under-Sheriff in ihe course of the morning . It is now generally believed that the latter culprit ; was not present at the time that the unfortunate-woman . waa murdered .
Removal of Mr . Vincent from MowwuTiL-r-Mr . H . Vincent , who has juat undergono at Monmoutbl a second trial for uttering seditious-words , hasarrived at Milbank Penitentiary .. The sentence passed upon him was , that he should- , be imprisoned for twelve months from the day of-his conviction . ( March 26 ) . He will hero be subjected to the rigoursof the silent system . Messrs . Edwards and Shellard , who were sentenced respectively , the former to eighteen , and tho latter to fourteen months ,, werebrought up with Vincent , and will * suffer the same treatment . —Ministerial Paper .
The Late Elopement . —We are enabled- to laybefore our readers the following particulars , which ; may be depended on : —The jjs is ? Dr . Dionysiua-Lardner , who so recently abused the confidence ' and . destroyed the happiness of a family in Brunswicksquare , Brighton , has met with the . punishment he so . richly deserved . The husband , after , a pursuit of ? nearly seven hundred miles , discovered that theguilty pair had taken refuge in Earis . He , acconv panied by the lady ' s father , eateredithe hotel ,, and ; found them at breakfast . The Rev . Doctor then , received , at the hands of tie injured husband ,. such , a tremendous drubbing as will cause him to remember it to the latest day of hia- life ,, which ho- saved only by crawling under a pianoforte that stood in . tie room . After leaving him , . more dead than , alive , and putting his wig on the lire , . the party took , away the lady , and withdrew , leaying the Reu > . Doctor to . bis own meditations . The above affair took place oo . Thursday last . —Swi .
The Newport Rioters . —At the-Monmouthshirequarter sessions , held at Usk , on Tuesday , last ,. Daniel Rorke , the younger , was indicted for conspiracy and riot , on the-4 th of November at New * port . Mr . Rickards conducted the prosecution . It appeared that the prisoner , . who was a p . ainter , living ; at Blackwood , wasseen , on the morning . of the ilk of November marching-in array with the insurgents * as they doscended Staw-hill , into . N « w . port , carry- * ing a mandril in Ms hand . It it was . also . proved that the prisoner had made use of language previously to the outbreak , whiah clearly show 8 < Uiis . knowledge > of and participatiouan the designs ^ of the insurgents * and he has declareiin strong terme-that the Charter should become ths ^ law of the land ,, and that . theyv
would have it by force . Mr . Vaughan . who appeared for the prisoner , ; , addressed tho Jury on his . behalf . He . w ^ s found guilty ,, and sentenced t » ix months' imprisonment with hasd . labour . Daniel Rorke tbe elder ( fathar of the last prisoner > was then pu ^ to the bar , ciarggd witfi a similar ^ offence . Miv Rickarcls conducted lie mtosecution and Mr . Ni-sholl defended the prisoner .. It waa . proved tha ^ on th o moraiag of tie- ith Novenjt * - ) er the prisoner , who is * much advanced ia years , * , but has keen a leading member ^ of the ChartiBt confederacy ,, was seen to jjoin , hiaself to the mob . as ? they proceeded , down Stow HiU towards tne Westgate , lib was after-wards seen in front of the ina .
duria&the attack , with his hat in his hand , waving ; it to , the multitude .. He had , however , no weapon , nojtwas' anything proved to affect him with previous kTjoJwliBdge ok "/ 'tie designs of . the insurgents , ot concert / with their plans . The Jury returned & ¦ wndjct ' of "Not Guilty , " and the Chairman , oa dismissing tho prisoner with a suitable admonition ^ remarked that he had found a very meroiful Juryv It was lamentable to observe that there was scarcely a witnoss on the part of the prosecution , though they wcro of the most respectable clasB , residents at Newport , who was not compelled , on cross-examination , to admit having been at some time a member of Chartist Clubs , or a frequenter . <) £ t&e . iy , jne . « tiing 8 . —Times .
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L ^ -- ^ = — ¦¦ - ^ ^^^^^^ - THE NORTHERN STAR . w
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Northern Star (1837-1852), April 18, 1840, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/king-y1kbzq92ze2680/page/7/
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