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Northern Star (1837-1852), 24th May 1845, Edition 2 of 3, Page 4, Susncwus Case. —An occurrence which ha, ...

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    • THE NORTHERN STAR. SATURDAY, MAY 24, ISia.
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      The "Last Of His Rmjk."—When The Earl Of...

      1 SFAMOTS *»„ HOBRIBiE ™* Z ™ % J * * mSbpool crew in the bonhy-R ^ r . Oo IWav a case which excited great interest , was » CrSlMrBushton , at the police court James £ SSS ^ atfaud Thos , go * , thesuper ^ go SZa * appeared to answer * charge of iStt ^ rrcd againstthem by Robert Brovv ^ Isaac 1 ST John Neville , John Bowker , and Chas . Pisher , five Stands belonging to that vessel . ^ °£ * ? £ ducted the casefor the comp lainants , and Mr . Saucuffe the defence . „ , _ ., called said

      Bobert Brown was the first witness . He , on theMth of September the Charlotte was lying in the Bonny River . The men were at hard work all day , and at night were enjoying themselves iu the forecastle singing The captain ( Campbell ) , the mate ( Black ) , and the boatswain , came aud said they were kicking up a tow , and called them all aft . When the hands went up it was said Johnson was drunk , and he was put -in the chains and fastened to the wheel . The next morning all hand' s were called aft to witness the punishment -of- Johnson . After it was over the mate made a speech , and said-he would flog any man that dared even to frown , and that his commanding voiceshouldbeheardi & the ship . I said , " Tea flogged a man for being groggy ; but when he was

      off his duty , and did his hard day ' s work , if he chose to huy -grog on-his own account , it was his own look-out , and he would be ready for his work the next morning , ** - The mate asked what 1 had got to say . 1 replied , that if he chose to flog me he might He said he would flog me on his -own responsibility , and he then ordered me to be seized up . Theboatswain obeyedtheorder . andgavenie four dozen lashes . Lyon subsequently came on board andstruckmeablowon theface , andsaid , " You nigger , youhave been trying to make a disturbance in the ship ; I shall have you chained up andfiogged . ** I entreated of him not to punish me any more , as I was very iB , my legs and feet being in a dreadful state from the small-pox . Lyon , however , had me put in irons and chained to the mizenmast where I was kept for four or

      five hours . Isaac Ryan deposed asfoBows : —On the 28 th of August 1 was painting the ship . When I got on decimal dinnertime , J saw Porter , one of the bands , chained to the mizenmast ; and being surprised at his remaining there in so steady and submissive a manner , I asked , " What ' s the matter , Bill ! " He laughed , and said , "It was all Tight" * Immediately upon this being said , I was turning round to go forward , and got a blow under the . ear from the chief mate ( Black ) . 1 asked him what was that for Hcsaid , "Ton— villain , it would serve you right if you were alongside of him- ** I said , " If it is yonr wish to see me there , you can put me there , but don't strike me ; keep your hands off , for if you don ' t I shall be

      obliged to lift you into the lee scuppers . " I then went forward to go to dinner , and had not got to the gangway before I was struck by Black and Lyon , and some Kroo boys . I made no resistance . The Kroo boys were called . 1 was put in irons and chained to the wheel , hands and feet Lyon then came up , and called me " a "Newgate reared villain / ' and struck me-several times whilst I was so chained . 1 was kept in chains for seventeen hours and three-quarters , 1 was then tied to the mizen rigging , and received seventeen la & es . Then I was cut down and ordered to duty , which I obeyed . Lyon admitted before all the African captains that I was a manly seaman , and able to show his officers their duty . John Neville was next called . He said : —On the 5 th of

      " November , after we had done our work , wehadsomegmg I turned in . Fisher began other talking or singing . The mate sad boatswain came to the fore-castle with a cutlass and pistols and fetched fisher up . They then called out for NcnUc I got out of bed and went up in my shirt They said I was drunk . I had only had a glass or two of grog of my own . They , then put me in irons , by . Lyon ' s orders . Hy hands and feet were ironed , and I was chained to the mizenmast in my shirt A chain was fastened round my body and they gagged me with an iron bolt "Wheal was fast the mate struck me repeatedly in the lace . I was unable to eat hard food lor three weeks . They kept me for ten hours in that state , although it was raining very heavy at intervals during the night . The next morning I got my clothes , and they kept me chained until the 7 th , when they gave me thirty lashes , by Lyon's orders , and cut me down and sent me over the ship ' s side to scrub thejiainting .

      John Bowker was the next witness . He said , on the 2 d of November I fell off the barricade by accident . When the sailing master , Captain Campbell , came to pick me up ,. he dragged me aft , said 1 was drunk , put my hands and feet in irons , lashed me to the wheels and left me in that situation until Lyon came on board at ten o ' clock » . a . Captain Campbell told him he had a man in irons , to which Lyon replied that he was delighted to hear it , end told Campbell to make him well fast . I remained in irons all night , and was wet through with the rain . On tbeSdofNoTemberl was tied to the UUSgn rigging , and received / onrteen lashes from the " YrOOluen . I WHS then let down , and Lyon told the captain to take me forward , and scrub my back . withapieceof sand . I begged of the captain to allow me to wash it with water , to which the captain consented ,. asd my back was not scrubbed .

      Charles Fisher . deposed as follows . —On the 5 th of November , 1 had finished my work for the day , and had got a little grog . 1 was in the forecastle talking , when the mate and boatswain came down , and the mate without saying a word struck me with a cutlass . They then dragged me on deck , and put me in irons , and kept me ¦ there until the 7 th , On that day Lyon ordered me to be flogged , and I received nineteen lashes , and was then sent to scrub the outside of the ship . The lash was always soaked in pickle before use . The defence was that the crew had been guilty of gross insubordination , that they were constantly in a state of intoxication , that they bad-stolen the rum belonging to the ship ' s cargo , and that they only received such a degree of punishment as their misconduct merited .

      Mr . Rushton , after hearing the whole of the ease and defence , which lasted altogether about three hours , said there was manifestly a laxity . of discipline on board the ship , which to some extent . was . attributable to the fact , that the sailing captain and the supercargo assumed t 6 e mastery at intervals , and that the men were acting under divided authority , lie then ordered Black and Lyon to pay a ft & e of £ 5 each for the assault . on Ryan , and Black to pay -50 s . in addition , for the assault , on Neville . The tJireeother cases brought against them by . Bro wo Bowker , and Fisher , he dismissed . «

      The Northern Star _ _ May 24 > 1845 ^

      THE NORTHERN STAR _ _ May 24 > 1845

      Tj3e Htdradlic Railway. (From The Liverp...

      TJ 3 E HTDRADLIC RAILWAY . ( From the Liverpool Times . ) An invention , under the above title , has been explained to us by the patentee , who is now in the neighbourhood , and it appears to be a system . of propulsion which jnerits more attention than it has thus far received . If the pretentions it lays . chum to are j nstly founded , . and the inventor offers to substantiate his statements , the day cannot be . veryfar . distantwhen a few enterprising men will take qp the system , and , without mcurring anything like the amount of expenditure that might be anticipated will bring it prominently before the public ; ana this ., as far as we can judge , seems all that is required to make it a subject of much interest to the railway world . An invention . that , apparently on the fair

      use of figures and scientific data , offers a more powerful propulsive agent than any now existing ; that promises a steady highfpeed at a very trifling cost m working expenses ; and which , from its power to ascend with facility steep Inclines ( much steeper than any now in use ) , will save so large a portion of that heaviest item in the construction of a railway' earthworks , - ' ic ., as not only to pay for the first cost of putting down the apparatus , but also to leave a large balance in hand besides , cannot long want friends in the present railway mania , when it is once truly known . But independently of the inability of the patentee to " move" hisinvention , it appears not unlikely that the onward progress of this system may have been retarded from another cause , namely—that

      against which nearly all leading inventions , which have not been at first strongly supported , have had for a time to struggle ; we mean erroneous impres sions . In this respect , from what w « learn , the hydraulic railway appears to have had its full share The most monstrous and crude impressions have been abroad , and the most ridiculous notions on the subjectof the " adaptation" of hydraulic power to the purposes of the system , circulated , even in leading quarters . It has been attempted to dupe the public into the belief that brick towers , two hundred feet in height , erected along the line one-eighth of a mile apart , or that huge vertical cast metal nines , of the

      same vertical elevation , about seventy yards apart , were part and parcel of the system ' ; whereas , if anything in the invention deserves peculiar commendation , it is in dispensing with aU unwieldy apparatus , and throwing the propulsive agent under very forcible pressure in the "power storers" with out ever raising it even sis feet above the railwaythat is , where natural falls of water from sufficient elevations do not occur ; asd Mr . Shuttleworth feels the position of his invention so strong , and calculates so little on frequent occurrences of these natural supplies of power , that he proposes , wherever they are found , to consider them as " windfalls" in favour of the system .

      The invention , when once clearly understood , is very simple . The patentee proposes to use a Cornish steam-engine , about one quarter of the power of that used on the atmospheric principle , for a similar length of way ( three miles } , but working both lines of of rails . With this power he seems to show fairly by injures , that he shall be able to " charge" a series of his propulsion receivers , or power storers , with the requisite quantity of water to drive over each section of the line . Now , these power-storers are something like truncated steam-boilers , and will bemadeof thin wrought iron , coated inside with asphalte , to render them perfectly air and water tight : and before they

      are first used , air , equal to a pressure of about five atmospheres , will be pumped into them as a constant , permanent pressure , ana which will not require renewal , as it will always lie above the water , which will never be all entirely rejected . These power storers are to receive their subjacent charges of water ttom the slow but constant action of the engine , during the intervals between the passing of «» trains ; and hence no small portion of the t ? ° ^ . of *•» system » derived . But there " another part of the invention which con-S ^ vfcS l - ! ^ ^ » f « ie whole . The sto ^ beou » i & ! ^? each of aese power-? kW h ^ te , i ^ r « 1 ** locomotives * encc , to apply lt constantly along the v » hole length

      Tj3e Htdradlic Railway. (From The Liverp...

      ola railway would be an absolute waste of power ; it is , therefore , used only according to the exigencies of the case ; and where a waiving line could be fully developed in any given locality , it would be-applied over one-sixth of the length of the line only ; that is , up steep inclines , say rising 1 in 20 , the power would be applied , but down gradual and much extended inclines , falling 1 in 100 , the trains would be . projected by the united powers of gravity and momentum , without any loss of speed , and without the aid of any propelling apparatus . Few localities would occur in which this waiving line could not be carried outto a great extent , and an undulating country is better for the development of the hydraulic system than one perfectly level ; the latter case , however , is one of would in

      -very unfrequent occurrence . The inclines every instance be made longer or shorter , according to the phvsical character of the country , and , in fact , the system would be as near as possible adapted to tiHt-t locslitv The manner in which the hydraulic power is applied , behind the travelling piston in the pipe , which propels the train , seems to be borrowed from the steam-engine , being by a throttle valve , so that the whole power can be turned on flush , or the water wire-drawn to any extent . By this simple arrangement , combined with the gradual opening of the -valve , all shock or jerk is completely obviated when a fresh supply of poweris thrown upon the piston as it is travelling along with the train . We have thus given a general sketch of the invention for the information of our readers ; but being , of

      course , a system—not a single machine or tool—it would require more space than we can spare to go through the whole of the detail Its leading characteristics , as will be gathered from the foregoing , appear to be—first , great power , so as to dispense with all tunnelling and heavy earthworks , and make the new railways which may adopt the system approximate in some degree , - as regards gradients , in character , to the more recent and better planned of some of our turnpikes . " , Up inclines of lin 20 it is proposed to drive trains of from sixty to eighty tons , being equal to trains . of from - 85 to 110 tonswithlocomotivesandtendersattached . Secondly , great economy in working expenses , and also in con structing a new line . These appear to ns to be features in the invention of the very first importance . Thirdly , a regular high speed ; and fourthly , safety in the trains from running off the line , from collisions , and from fire .

      The Northern Star. Saturday, May 24, Isia.

      THE NORTHERN STAR . SATURDAY , MAY 24 , ISia .

      Ireland. H —"Alas! Poor Country, Almost ...

      IRELAND . h — "Alas ! poor country , Almost afraid to know itself . " Lord Pluxkett very aptly styled the chronology of the oldboroughmonpringhistory an " old almanack : *' and limited the time , beyond which memory' goeth not , to the passing of the Reform Act . As regards Ireland , however , we may include the short period from the passing of Emancipation to the enactment of the Reform Bill as a portion of the history of the country , and Mr . O'Conneli ,, as the moving power to give effect , for good or for evil , to those

      two gigantic measures ; gigantic . in their . capabilities , but stunted in their performance . In the debate of Tuesday night , on-the Maynooth grant , Mr . BEiXEwmost faithfully represented the Catholic feeling of Ireland , in the following short but pithy terms : — "He could not , however refrainfrom telling the House that many years would not elapse before it must come to a decision upon the territorial relations existing between the Protestant Church of Ireland and the Roman Catholic occupiers ofHie soil : for they migh take his word for it , that the Protestant Church . Establuhmcnt was at the bottom of all the grievances of Ireland "

      Now , those are words of wisdom , words of truth , and words of warning j words that we have printed and repeated times without number . Not so much to the amount of spoil as to the mode and manner of upholding its dominion , is the hatred to thelaw-church to be ascribed . The amount annually paid , —somewhat under a million and a half , —is but the nest-egg whereon the old hen has laid her prolific " overy . " The amount of monies wrung from the Catholic peasantry by the expensive process of Ecclesiastical Courte , Bishop ' s Court , Process of Citation , Quarter Sessions , Court of Exchequer , and Court of Chancery , exceeded the stipulated Church dues by more than five-fold its amount : and these "by-gones " still rankle in the Catholic mind . By returns made

      to the House of Commons in 1833 of law expenses incurred in the recovery of money lent to the starving parsons of Ireland by the people of England , it appeared that the cost of recovering five farthings of tithe amounted to over one hundred pounds .: and this was not an isolated case . The present Mr . Justice-JPerbijj , in his unrivalled speech npon the tithe question , cited numerous cases of equal atrocity . In whatever form the flesh-wound may present itself , the core , the root , the cause of Ireland ' s woes , is the Protestant State Church Establishment and until every trace of its recollection becomes part and parcel of " old almanack history '' there never can be , there never ought to be , and if we can help it , " THERE SEVEE . SHAH BE , PEACE IS IRELAND . "

      If an evil use is made of power , men are but too apt to underrate its-value . Hence , because but little good was accomplished by . the Emancipation Bill , and not much more by the Reform Act , have men consider ably underrated the value of those two measures , charging upon legislation evils which properly belong to popular apathy . Emancipation and Reform were but intended as means to an end ; and we are now about to consider , as far as belaud is concerned , the endstowMchMr . O'CoHi-Ei ^ m fntheenormouspower possessed by him , has applied those gigantic means . If Emancipation meant anything , it meant the removal of tie State Church burthen from Catholic shoulders . It did not mean the commutation of

      parsons' tithe into landlords' rent-charge , whereby the said landlords , whether resident or absentee , were enabled to rob the resident parsons of twenty-five per .-cent , of their income , upon no better pretext than that . of furnishing the landlords with a less irritable , more easy , and less expensive mode of collecting the whole luuidred per cent , from the Catholic payer . The three memorable days of the French revolu tion conferred an amount of strength upon the English reformers which insured the success of their measure , while ike Reform Bill itself placed at the disposal of Mr . O'Connellan amount of power never before wielded by any single individual ; and what has been the use he has made of his slant

      strength ? Eismotto has ever been : " givemebutan instalment of justice and I will take Ireland ' s debt in mere fractional proportions . " The Irish people , as early as March , 1831 , began to look for " the inward and spiritual grace" of Catholic Emancipation . A great majority of the Protestant landlords , whose estates had been converted into Church security by the Tithe Commutation Bill of Mr . Goulbobn , joined the Catholic people loudly and lustily for the total abolition of tithes . They took the significant words of Lord Stanley as their guide . The noblelord , when taunted with having done nothing for Ireland ,

      after cnumeratingthe several benefits that were to flow to Ireland from Reform , added , and we hate abolished hjhes , and job ever . Call you that nothing ? Were not those tansmanic words , and well calculated to rouse a less exciteable people to their realisa tion ? Ireland accordingly aroused in its might . Catholic holders of the soil and Protestant possessors joined in the anti-tithe crusade . Meetings—" monster meetings "—were held in every parish , barony , town , and county . The leading spirits were incarcerated , or threatened , while many of the bravest were privately consigned to the cold grave : Hodseii , Rosatse , Hexsbssey , and countless others , acting upon the command of the Liberator , preferred the dungeon to the "violation of orders ! They refused to

      pay their tithes ; they headed the people in their assault on the Protestant church , and were incarcerated ; Feabgus O'Connor and the gallant Capt . Siowsll , both Protestants , were arrested and indicted as the prime movers in the conspiracy against the Protestant church . Poor Stowell sent two zealous priests to ensurethe professional services of Mr . O'Coxkeix . The learned gentleman took the fee , but withheld the service ; and tie consequence was , that when the late Chief Baron Wodlfe told Siowell that there was a transportable count in the indictment against him and O'Connor , Stoweu . ( who had been recently married ) took to his bed , and died of a train fever in forty-eight hours ; and thus did Ireland lose one of the most intrepid champions

      Ireland. H —"Alas! Poor Country, Almost ...

      of her liberty . O'Connor was tried , and acquitted . At the moment that the Government was about to yield to the national demand when every soldier in Ireland was " used up" from fatigue ; when the people were of one mind , and when the crowning " monster" meeting was to have been held at Ballinascarthy , Mr . O'Connell sent over his missive to abandon all further Tithe agitation , upon the pretext that Lord Pluskeit had administered some soothing emollient in his speech in the House of Lords . This abandonment of the ' vantage ground was the signal

      for Government persecution : and , as we have stated , the leaders were arrested and many of them ruined . It has ever been the policy of Mr . ' 0 'Conner to rouse the popular mind to the point of accomplishment : and then to show his power by " whooping " the eagles from their carrion . Thus , Mr . O'Connell fastened the tithe impost round the neck of the Catholics . Millions were expended in resisting tithes in compliance with his order—to resist all payment of tithes ; while he was the first to discharge his " obligat ions" to the church .

      This anti-tithe crusade was fostered to aid in carrying the Reform Bill . The Reform Bill was carried : and Mr . O'Connell had , as the first instalment of the measure , forty-two Repeal members at his back , who would have died upon the floor of the House of Commons at his mere bidding . This was such a force as no party ever possessed before . The Irish members met , and determined to avoid all minor questions , and to concentrate then * united force on the great question of Repeal . Ireland was " up to the mark , " and ready to back her leaders to the death . The Irish members were strictly

      prohibited from taking any part in minor questions . When tjie first debate upon the question was over , Mr . O'Connell asked for " simplejustice for Ireland . " He said that a Tralee tailor and a Kildare cooper had authorised him to abandon the Repeal . He proclaimed this two-thirds of Tooley-street power in Liverpool ; and the gaping crowd threw up their caps and shouted "justice ! " He made a tour through England and Scotland , and the very air through whichhepassedwasredolentofjustice . " "Justice to Ireland" floated upon cverypassing br eeze . The whole people of the three kingdoms were at his back : the middle classes were in his arms : he had only to march to Charing-cross , and to proclaim a new

      constitution ; but instead , he ticketed himself for sale ; he advertised Ms terms in his letters to Lord Dcscannon , the then Home Secretary . He sold , or got rid of , twenty-nine of the forty-two Repealers , securing every member of his own family and his nearest connexions in patent places that did not depend upon a change of Ministry ; he established aPrecursor . Association , principally for the purpose of allowing the more wealthy Repeal members to sell themselves to the Government for honours , distinctions , and titles ;• and the principle by which that associa . tion was governed was— "justice to Ireland" upon the instalment principle ; and to the measures to be achieved by the association we will now direct attention .

      Mr . O'Connell said : govern Ireland like Yorkshire , aud you may call her 'West Britain ; ' place us upon a political equality with the people of England , and we will be satisfied . " But when he returned to England , he divided the two classes into the slaveclass and the master-class , telling the people that as long as they were deprived of the franchise they must be slaves ; and yet ho sought for no more than this slavish equality for the Irish people . He drew up and signed with his own hand the resolutions upon which the people ' s Charter was based , and said to Ms working men coadjutors : " there , take that ; it

      contains your rights ; rest not satisfied with anything less . " Other measures of his " justice" was a good Jury Bill , a good Libel Law ; and a Municipal Corporation Bill , as extensive as was conceded to England and Scotland , Thcseweresomeofthe "instalments " demanded of the debt due to Ireland ; but before all , the appointment of Irishmen to all-offices of emolument ; and the question we sow ask Mr . O'Connell is simply this : during the ten years that his Whig friends held office , did he venture to ask , or did they dare to offer as large an instalment of the debt due to Ireland as Sir Robert

      Peel has bid in the present session ? And we further ask him , whether all unitedly are as a drop in the ocean when compared with Sir Robert Peel ' s proposed Educational Bill ? No ; not all put together . The Maynooth grant , although an astounding instance of the Prime Minister ' s boldness and capacity , which Mr . O'Connell cheerfully accepts , is at -variance with his oft-repeated declaration , that the Catholic priesthood should never be bribed by the State ; while the Academical Bill , untrammelled by spiritual interference , is the very principle for which

      through life he has contended , and the want of winch was the very principle upon which the Kildare-street Educational Plan was denounced . This very system of mixing up theological interference with secular education has been the one most denounced by Mr , O'Connell and his party : and now that the Prime Minister offers the secular cheese without the theological grindstone , the Agitator says— "No ; touch mi pocket , touch my life—take back your nasty cheesethe ignorance of a people is the tyrant ' s best title to power ; the education of a people is their title to freedom . "

      The Repeal agitation was got up in 1832 to mar the effects of the Reform Bill . It was abandoned in 1836 to purchase patronage from the Whigs . It was renewed in 1840 and 1841 , to aid them in holding power against the will of the English people . It was resuscitated in 1843 to replenish the exchequer , and to increase the tribute ; and it is renewed in 1845 to enable Mr . O'Connell to select from the measures of Sir Robert Peel , which should be taken as a whole , those portions which would perpetuate strife and discontent , and to reject those which , with the assistance of the great and glorious Father Mathew , would lead to the establishment of a sound national mind , which would confer "Ireland upon the Irish , " instead of pouring her pauper-resources into the lap of a national juggler .

      We shall now show that even our greatest enemies aye compelled , though indirectly , to support the principles of the People ' s Charter . Let it be understood , that while some may dread its influences upon the national mind , none dare deny the value of education . Here , then , is our reasoning . The Minister says : "I will build and endow schools for the instruction of the youth of Ireland . I will neither force any peculiar creed upon the students , nor will I make religion an apple of discord . I will reserve to myself and successors the power of

      pieventing such a result . " "No , " says Mr . O'Connell , "I dare not denounce education , though I fear it ; but the heads of the Catholic Church , and not you , must have the patronage . " Now then , how , under those circumstances , can the benefit of education be conferred without danger to the Catholic youth of Ireland ? We will tell Mr . O'Connell— only by the enactment of the People ' s Charter , which would vest the patronage in the hands of Ministers elected by the people , and consequently of having thenconfidence .

      Hence we show that all Mr . O'Connell ' s fencing , nibbling , feinting , puking , puling , babbling , childish policy , receives favour in the eyes of those who dare not see for themselves ; while every man who -ventures to look beyond his nose , must come to the conclusion that the extension of the franchise to the Charter standard , and that that alone , can secure undefiled education , untrammelled religion , unbiassed ministers , honest teachers , a Repeal of the legislative Union , " Ireland ; fbr the Irish , " and the

      utter annihilation of the bloated law-church . Mr . O'Connell knows these things , and knows them well too : but he also knows that £ 20 , 000 a year , and " pickings" out of £ 600 a week , make a larger salary than a government constituted on the principles of the People ' s Charter would allow for the very highest service . We have told the English educationists and the fanatical Chartist Church humbugs , that the Charter must precede national education ; and often have we told the Irish that the Repeal

      Ireland. H —"Alas! Poor Country, Almost ...

      that is to give " Ireland" to ihem , must be preceded by the Charter ; and that the Repeal , if carried with the present franchise , would be but a transfer of power from the old to a new oppressor . "Young Ireland" will , in the long ran , be compelled to come out for the People ' s Charter . It is a " course" on which the progressive m ind has set itself , and one which will never be abandoned ; and , therefore , we invite them to its study and pursuit forthwith . ^ r

      Progress Of Our Cause. We Rejoice That T...

      PROGRESS OF OUR CAUSE . We rejoice that the recent Trades Conference has been productive of more benefit than in our most warm anticipations we had a right to calculate on . Notwithstanding the machinations of the obstructors of all measures propounded by the working classes for their own redemption , and notwithstanding their poor attempt to cast ridicule upon the performance of the Trades Conference , the Trades themselves have resolved upon makingthe representation of their bodies in July next , a full-length picture of that miniature of Labour ' s rights , recently exhibited .

      The part that the Northern Star has taken on this all-important subject has been used as a reason why the Trades should hold themselves aloof from the projected National Union . To us , as well as to the thinking portion of the Trades this objection must appear rather paradoxical . The Northern Star for now nearly eight years has been i » advance of the Trades Movement . It has been the expounder of those principles npon which alone a national organisation can be successfully established . It has been in advance , not only of the daily and weekly press , but also in advance of the ' several publications

      professing to emanate from the Trades themselves . It has been their sole , their only defender , ivhea their rights Itave been invaded by the oppressor in whatever form he has presented himself— whether in the shape of legal tyranny , individual oppression , sectional power , or organised caprice . These facts establish our title at least to counsel : and that counsel we have ever given modestly , but firmly . Spite of all the barkings of the pitiful snarlers , we shall continue to offer advice in the same spirit : and shall not be diverted from onr course by any manifestation of petty jealousy , or the more decided opposition of black-hearted envy .

      The time is drawing nigh when the General Conference of Trades is to be held ; and no time should be lost in canvassing the several Trades as to the best mode of establishing such a national organisation as will be free from all party and sectional differences . The foundation of national organisation must be a well-digested financial scheme for the collection of funds , to enable the Executive body to give effect to the general principle . The questions of " supply " and " confidence" in the Executive body are the two chief considerations on which the mind should he first made up : and therefore it is of paramount importance that the several localities should bestir themselves in time , and set about the consideration of all matters likely to be discussed .

      The manner in which the Land scheme is now being adopted , leaves little doubt that the subject will be brought prominently before the Conference ; and therefore , to"this branch of Trades' business we beg to direct immediate attention . When the anti-land champions are foiled in their opposition to the Small Farm plan , their last argument is : " Aye , but where are you to get the money ? We admit that if you had the means , the plan , under good arrangement , might be made beneficial , " There is some force in this objection ; an objection which Biay . lt once be met and satisfied by the Trades themselves . By the

      plan adopted by the Chartist Convention it appeal's that the sum of £ 5000 would enable the association , within a very short period , to locate 1000 families upon allotments of two acres each , with good cottages to live in , leaving , at the time of their location , more than double the amount of the funds originally expended , in the hands of the Society . Would it not , then , be well worthy the attention of a national body , whose every device for the amelioration of its own class has been exhausted upon mere fanciful projects , to try one which promises so much , and from which loss cannot possibly result ? The

      question , at least , is worthy of consideration . Thousands upon tens of thousands agree that the Land scheme , if energetically carried out , is capable of redeeming the working classes from their present state of dependence on the will of their masters . If they want law to protect them , they appeal to those who have an interest in grinding them . If they want a systematic plan of organisation to protect them , they find themselves trammelled by antagonist interests , foolish jealousies , suspicions , and caprice . A new plan is propounded , which opens for them a new field , into which none of those adverse interests , suspicions , or contentions can possibly enter—the Land . Its capabilities and its applicability to the regulation of

      wages is admitted by nine-tenths of the working class population . A fair trial of an experiment thus fiated by public approval , would require no larger amount than £ 5000 to develope its value . Not £ 5000 to be vested in rash speculation ; but £ 5000 to be laid out with every prospect of being doubled in less than five years , and with the certainty that it could not be diminished by one single farthing , even should the experiment signally fail . Now , this is setting but a small price upon national redemption t and we really must look sceptically upon the boasted patriotism of those who spend millions in the pursuit of justice , which they invariably fail of acquiring , while they withhold the small sum of £ 5000 on a venture which

      promises emancipation , and precludes the possibility of loss . As a further inducement to ' action in the proper direction , we call attention to the letter of Mr . O'Connor , which will be found in our first page . When we think of the several "bubbles" now presented , as " safe investments" for securing four per cent ., there can be little hesitation , about the acceptance of the offer therein contained . However , we think we may , without much presumption , recommend it to the consideration of those to whom it is addressed .

      Doings Of The Land-Robbers. We Beg To Di...

      DOINGS OF THE LAND-ROBBERS . We beg to direct the reader ' s attention to two letters which will be found in our seventh page , extracted freni the Times , detailing the facts of a " cu-aranoe , " or " weeding , " as it is ruthlessly called , now in course of operation on the estate of a Major Charles Robertson , in the county of Rossshire . This Robertson is an "absentee" landlord ; a military officer , at present with his regiment in Australia . Comprised in " his estate" is a tract of land , which , but for the laborious industry

      of the occupiers , might have been a barren waste . For the use of this land the toiling cottiers have been in the habit of paying a rent four times the amount which for such land any English farmer would give ; but not content with this , the grasping land-fore" resolves to c ; rtemm < i « eaye , EXTERMINATE-that ' s the right word-this virtuous community , that he may draw " more " rent , by throwing the land out of tillage and letting it for shesp-walks . We beg the reader to pay particular attention to the character of the people who are thus subjected to wrong , robbery , and death . They have always paid their rent punctually . Surely that should be the chief of virtues in a land-ford ' s

      estimation ' They have no poor on the poor ' s-roll , but support each other in sickness and need . They are blameless , and freefromvice . Not a single inhabitant of the valley has been charged with any offence for many years . Lastly—during the late war this valley supplied the army with many soldiers , who shed their blood , or gave up then- lives in DEFENCE of the " property" and "institutions" of the landlords and labour-plunderers of the island ; and , at the present time , an old pensioner , eighty-two years of age , is in a dying state in the cottage in which he was bornbutfrom which cottage he is to be dragged in his dying moments , at the bidding of a rascally landagent , to glut the avarice of . a selfish , heartless , absentee landlord , .

      Doings Of The Land-Robbers. We Beg To Di...

      Clinging to their humble homes with the desperation oi despair—over-awed by the law ' s brute force , and overcome by a trick of despicable cunning , the poor creatures , in the agony of their hearts , hearing that they did not pay rent enough (!) offered to pay £ 15 a year more rent , and afterwards , offered to pay as-much rent for the place as any other party would give . All was in vain : the fiat had gone forth ! They ivere to be " WEEDED OUT " -and " weedeb out" they will be , though they perish and die !

      What other prospect is there for them ? Men with large families—widows with imbecile children , turned on the " wide world V Of eighteen families , comprising ninety souls , only three families have the means of subsistence before them : the rest are , or will be nearly all houseless , and all utterly destitute . They are hopeless and helpless ! They know not where to go , nor what to do to live . IIow is it possible to calmly reason on this wholesale atrocity ? But the " clearance " at Glen Calvie , it will be seen , is not a solitary instance . The miscreant , Gillanders — let his name be pilloried for public infamy—is engaged in pursuing the same cpurse in other districts , in one of which some hundreds of families have been " WEEDED "

      within the last four years . But , after all , the brute Gillanders is hut the agent of the military usurper , Robertson , It is idle to say that he-the landlord—is not " responsible" for the crimes and cruelties of his agent . He is " responsible , " and although "Laws grind the poor , and rich men rule the law , " and , therefore , it is not possible to reach him with the law ' s just vengeance , it is possible to reach him and his class with , the shafts of public opinion . The doings of the class of which Robertson is one , will have one good result : those doings will compel the people to investigate into the assumed right and authority by which these men

      " Play their fantastic tricks before high heaven , " daring—impiously and insolently daring—to drive to destruction then * fellow creatures . These " clearinces" and "WEEDINGS" will do—shall do , we promise—something more than create a passing horror at the oppression of the wrong-doer , or a momentary feeling of pity for his victims . Tho people will be led to ask , not only by what right Major Robertson "WEEDS" his estate , but also by what

      right or title , he , or his class , " hold estates at all . Such questions will be asked—such questions must be answered . If the land-robbers throw doivn the gauntlet , they must find to their cost that the many are not in want of champions to take it up . The people have been silent too long . They have " respected" the " rights of property , " while property has shown no respect for the " rights of man . " The aristocracy provoke the conflict : be it so : fling away the scabbard ' .

      Our readers may depend on our not letting this matter drop . Under the sufficiently significant head of THE LAND , we have commenced a series of revealments , which shaU never cease until we have fully exposed the atrocities of the land-robbers , and fully satisfied the people as to whom the land , of right , belongs .

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      To The Readers Or The " Star."—Friends,—...

      To the Readers or the " Star . "—Friends , —As a matter of justice to the Rev . Wm . Hill , 1 must state , that by far the greater portion of the " Article" headed , " Who is the Coward , " quoted in Mr . O'Connor ' s letter to that gentleman published in the Star of last week , was not written by Mr . Hill , but by me . It is true that Mr . Hill was Editor at the time the article in question appeared ; it is true , also , that the MS , was placed in his hands for adoption or rejection j it i 8 W 1 C that he adopted those portions of the original article that suited him , interspersing it with entire paragraphs of his own writing ; it is true all this—but still it is not true that " every word of it was Mr . Hill ' s own writing , " as Mr . O'Connor says ,

      after quoting it . Of course , Mr . O'Connor could not know but that his representation of the fact was correct ; but as I happen to know differently , I am bound to make the explanation . Absence from totvn last week prevented the explanation from being given at the foot of Mr . O'Connor ' s letter . I did not see that letter ' till it was in print , but I embrace the first opportunity of setting the matter right . The article , as quoted last week , consists of nineteen paragraphs ; of those , paragraphs 1 , 7 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 17 , and 18 , were written by Mr , Hill : the others were mine , adopted by that gentleman . The reader , by numbering the paragraphs in consecutive order with his pen , can see " which is which . " This is but fair : for " every tub ought to stand on its own bottom . " —Joshua Hobson . 11 , Ross , BROMFioN . —Reluctantly kept over for next

      week , James ForiKES , Wellington , —Much obliged by his attention . We could not make use of his favour on the present occasion . James Finlav , SnoTiEr Bridge . —His is a case that we cannot advise in . Any opinion we might give would not be worth a straw in the absence of an intimate knowledge of all the facts of the case . "We are always fearful that in sucli matters we may do mischief , by giving erroneous advice , Before he purchases , ourcorrespondent had better consult a lawyer-friend . To Correspondents Gsnerallt . —The absence of Mr . Hobson from . town , has psevented several communications from being answered , Arrears will be brought up next week . S . Kron , Glasgow . —His letter is not at hand just now .

      We shall see next Saturday whether there is anyoecasion to publish it or not . The Land and the Franchise . —In reply to the question so frequently asked— " Would the leases for ever in the Chartist Co-operative Land Plan confer the franchise , " I beg to state that" leasehold property , originally grantedfor twenty years , and of the yearly value of £ 50 , or leased for sixty years , and of the value of £ 10 per annum , will confer the county franchise , unless where it would give a borough vote ; " and as the law rests upon the value , and not the absolute rent paid , our Chartist friends need not be under any apprehension for I cannot conceive any one so dull as to rate two acres of land , in a state of high cultivation , with a cottage , at less value than £ 10 per annum , so that the Land plan at one and the same time will confer both

      political and social freedom . —Edmond Stallwood , Secretary to the Chartist Registration Committee . Mr . Roberts . —Mr , W . P . Roberts is now in Manchester . He will be at Blackburn on Monday next , the 26 th inst ., and will remain there till the evening . Lord John Russell's Resolutions , —We have received the following : —Fellow Tradesmen , — It is indeed strange , and indeed wonderful , that after you have been brought to so low an ebb , that the Government , not content with that , should seek to reduce you still further . A general meeting of the Broad Silk Handloom Weavers of Spitalfields , and its vicinity , will take place on Wednesday , May 21 st , 1845 , at eight o ' clock in the evening , in Hare-street School-room , Hare-street , Brick-lane , Bcthnal-green , opposite the site of the Old Bethnal-green Workhouse , to take into its

      consideration a series of resolutions which have been introduced into the House of Commons by Lord John Russell , and also a speech of Sir Robert Peel ' s , vn VihAch he intimates that in the next Session of Parliament he shall still further reduce the duties upon foreign wrought silks . The persons appointed to wait upon the man ufacturers to ascertain their opinions , and toobtain their signatures in favour of the establishment of Local Boards of Trade , for the regulation of prices and the settlement of disputes , will also deliver in a report to this meeting . —By order of the Union , J . S . Sherrard , Secretary , D . W ., Aberdeen , —To make the lines admissible , the first three must be amended . There is no such word as " gowanie , " that we ever heard of , either English or Scotch .

      Monies Eece1yed By Mr. O'Connor. Tor The...

      MONIES EECE 1 YED BY MR . O'CONNOR . TOR THE BXECUTIVE ( lEVY ) . £ s , 1 From Hull , per G . Baraett .. .. ; JA'i RECEIPTS PER GENERAL SECRETARY . SUBSCRIPTIONS . Merthyr Tydvil .. .. 5 0 Carlisle 3 " e White Horse , -White . Tavistock .. 1 n chapel .. ,. .. 5 0 Brighton 30 Cummersdale .... 5 0 „ . CARDS , City of London .. 3 0 Whittington and Cat 5 6 Marylebone .. .. 3 0 Carlisle , two hand-Plymouth ,. .. 7 0 books 0 * Oldham , .... 12 6

      DONATION . A friend , Turnagain-lane , Oct . 3 rd , per Mr . M'Grath 0 6 MBS . ELU 8 , Mr . Bateman , late of Lambeth , per Mr . Dron .. 2 0 Co-operative Land SociETv . -Cnrds and rules can be obtained of the secretary , 243 J , Strand : District Commit , tees mil also be supplied with an account-bbok ( gratis for the use of the sec ety . Rules can be obtained ! separate from the cards , price twopence ; one postage stamp must be enclosed to defray the carriage . Persons wSffiS join , can do so b y remitting Is . 8 d . for cards rnl « » m postage , is . of wluch willbe an iaatawSM ^ THOMAS MARTIN WHEELER , ^ Secretary .

      Lancashire Miners. — The Next M™™! Ja I*-

      Lancashire Miners . — The next m ™™! ja i * -

      Touent^Otemea, * Invi Tst*. ^

      toUent ^ OTemea , * Invi tst * . ^

      house ot Mrs . Mary Elliott , sign of the jfi £ ? Arms , Dukinfield on Monday , June 2 nd-chaS £ taken at eeven o ' clock in the fTOmooTTpSfi meeting will also be held on the same day whXwill be addressed by W . P . Roberts , Eso ., and oS gentW . ThftUrty , for the fortnight ? will te Is . 8 d . per member , including general StriSoS ? „„„

      Susncwus Case. —An Occurrence Which Ha, ...

      Susncwus Case . —An occurrence which ha , caused a great sensation , has just taken pi ace * Hampstead . It appears that , on Tuesday week last a fashionably-attired young female , accom panied two persons in the garb of gentlemen , arrived in I cab at the house of Mr . Allen , tailor , Hi gh-street Hampstead , and engaged of Mi-s . Allen sonic ready furnished apartments she had to let , the lady passmo as the wife of one of the supposed gentlemen Tnf gentlemen visited her together once or twice the i ^ t visit being on Wednesday last . From the neriodnf their departure up to Friday morning , between ft ™ nrtil ( uir n '«> ln (> k Mtt ! Allp . n novpi' hnnv / 1 « ' ™

      thing of the young female ; she was then awakS by hearing loud screams , and on proceeding tort young woman's apartment she discovered tiieiU locked . The screams continued , she had it [»?] open , and the unfortunate female was then discover l lying on the bed in strong hysterics , and a newly hn child , lying near her , quite dead , and turned hpT / black . Mr . Gower , surgeon , of Hampstead w , "• stantly sent for , and attended , and the fcma \' c Avn f " name has been discovered to be Caroline Gaulu -wt her age 22 , recovered her senses for a short pe ' vkl and on being questioned as to where she had obtained some bottles of medicine found in the room she ad mitted they had been provided for her by her Mend , who brought her there . She became worse and worse and died . about eight o'clock the same movn ' no After death , singular to relate , Mrs . Gower , the wi | of the surgeon , who had been called in , came and took away the bottles of medicine just alluded to , and bv some means or other the parties who had broncht tli »

      deceased to Hampstead were made acquainted with the death . They gave directions for the immediate interment of both mother ' and child , adding at the time to the undertaker , that money was no object & that the burial could be promptly effected with sccrcsy Within a few hours oi death the bodyoftlie fcnialt turned to the same black hue as the deceased chili and on another medical man being called in , he ex ' pressed his opinion that the deceased had been 4 " stroyed by the administration of certain mixtures taken to procure abortion . These circumstances . coming to the knowledge of Hunt , the summonin g officer , he lost no time in malting the coroner acquainted therewith , and Mr . Wakley , having under stood it to be the determination of the parties to bvn-y the bodies onSunday / . issued a warrant to Inspector Grey , of the S division , to prevent the iiuieivij Uilthtr place , should it be attempted , lie has also issued his warrant to Mr . Lord , the surgeon , of Hampstead . to make a post mortem examination .

      Tub Inquest , —On Tuesday Mr . Waklov , M . l \ opened au inquest at the Black Hoy , at Hampstead ! on the bodiesof Caroline Hillman , aliasGaids , and her infant , said to have died from the eil ' ects of certain poisonous mixtures administered to her with a view to procure abortion . The inqucst-Yooivv \? ag crowded , aud the coroner and jury having viewed the bodies , Mr . Wakley intimated that no evide nce would be taken , and that the inquiry would be at onee adjourned till a future day , of which notice will be given . The court was cleared of strangers , and after a short interval the inquiry was adjourned for a week . It was understood that the reason for adjournment was to secure the production of some im . portant evidence affecting the parties alleged to be concerned in the transaction .

      The Case op Alleged Ill-Treatment or . « Insane Patient in a Private Pauper Lunatic Asylum . —Pursuant to adjournment from Wednesday last , Mr . Wakley , coroner , and the jury jin panelled to ascertain by what means William Holding , aged sixteen and a half years , lately an inmate of Armstrong ' s Peckham House Lumvtie Asylum , came by his death , re-assembled on Monday afternoon , at the Earl Cathcart , Monster-street , Regent ' s Park , for the third time . After the examination of several witnesses , Mr . Wakley recapitulated the evidence , and observed that , painful as these inquiries invariably were , he believed they \ me calculated to work out the greatest good in enforcing the principles of humanity in the management of private lunatic asylums . The court was then cleared

      of strangers , and , after a discussion which lasted upwards ot ' an hour , it was re-opened , when the Foreman handed to the coroner the following as the unanimous verdict of the jury : — "That William Holding died from exhaustion , produced b y dischavgc from large wounds from his hips and lower part of liis back , and that how those wounds were caused tliere was not sufficient evidence before the jurors to prove ; and that although there was inflammation in lus skin in the situation where the wounds afterwards appeared that such wounds did dot exist when the said William Holding was admitted into Armstrong ' s Lunatic Asy . km at Pecldiam , whereas the fact is established that they existed in a most aggravated form when he was removed from the asylum : and that the jury are decidedly of opinion'that the medical treatment of the deceased was cruelly neglected whilst he was in the asylum . " The inquiry again lasted several hours .

      Singular Occurence . —During the thunder storm on Saturday last a remarkable circumstance occurred to two sisters , daughters of a professional gentleman of this city . One of them was at a house in Bristol when the lightning entered the drawing-room in which she was sitting , wA struck her on the head , causing a lump to rise upon it almost instantaneously , depriving her of the sight of the left eye for a considerable time , and drawing the mouth aside , as if she had been attacked by paralysis . We are happy to learn , that with the exception ot a degree of numbness on the left side , she has recovered from the effects of

      the injury . Her sister was at a friend ' s house , about five miles from tin ' s city , and , at nearly the same period at which the above occurrence took place , the lightning entered the room in which she and the family were at dinner , the paper was torn from the walls , part of the skirting boards torn awav , and a gun which was in the room ( Imppilv charged with powder only ) exploded ; but , mostprovidentialy none of the party sustained any personal injury , although the room appeared filled with the electric fluid , and several other parts of the house were damaged . — Bristol Journal .

      Melancholt Death . —We learn that the body of a man named Halladay , a tailor , from Spinningdale , was found some -time ago on the hills between Aultnacardoch and Lairg . The unfortunate man used to work for the shepherds who inhabit the wilds of Reay and Sutherland , and it is supposed that he fell a victim to the fury of the elements , whilst returning to his place of residence . The body was discovered by accident , and Halladay was never missed—the shepherds not doubting but he had got safe home , and his wife imagining that he was pursuing his ocupation amongst them . —hwcmw Courier .

      Death from Intoxication . —On Monday , an inquest was held before the borough coroner , on view of the body of Bridget Cullen , a woman upwards of seventy years of age , who resided in Chadwick-strect , Liverpool . It appeared that she was very much addicted to drinking , and that about twelve o ' clock on Saturday last she was found lying dead on the floor of her apartment , with her head resting on a stool . Dr . O'Donnell was of opinion that she had fallen while in a state of intoxication , and that death was caused by suffocation from excessive drinking . The jury found accordingly .

      Breaking up of the Ice on Lake Erie . —The 5 lake broke up early in March , and the ice was float- - ing about in islands and large cakes , which were e driven by the westerly wind into the Niagara River , , completely filling its whole channel from Black Rock It to the Falls . The scene presented at this latter point it was very impressive . From the head of Goat Island , 1 , as far up as the eye could reach , was presented an n unbroken field of ice . In the Rapids long lines of if jagged crags were formed by the islands and cakes of rf ice which were forced up on the rocks and shoals , s , ieavingdeep , naiTOWchannelsbctweenthem . Through gh these channels huge spectral columns and masses ses were rushing on like spirits of destruction to a car- arrival of death . The deep emerald of the falling ng

      sheet of water was flecked with greater and lesser ser spots of the purest white , presenting the appearance ace of a vast molten column of verd antique marWe , de , while the spray losing that comparatively regular lar and continuous ascent usual to it , was sent up in in fitful and irregular spouts and clouds . In the chasm ism below was another field of ice , scarcely heaving to ; to the throb of the mighty pulse below . If the scene lene at the i alls was impressive , at Lcwiston it waster-terrific . The north-westerly wind , driving the waves ives of Lake Ontario into the mouth of the Niagara , pre-prevented the ice from escaping . As the weatherthei was freezing , the agglomerated mass soon formedmec a solid barrier from shore to shore .- The ice , ice , constantly driven down from above , was forced » rce < under the upper strata , and the water operatine like liki

      a hydrostatic bellows , it was constantly elevated untiluntill it reached a thickness of nearly sixty feet , for six > r six ; miles up the river from its mouth . As it gradualljualls rose and spread itself to the utmost limits of spactspacf between the banks , it crushed and bore away they tb * large timber of docks and warehouses , and tore up bjup bjf the roots oak trees six feet in circumference , as if ft if 511 was a mere pastime for its strength . While listeninteniiif { to the tearing of great roots of trees and the craefcrackv ing of the huge timbers , it seemed that w co \ it co \ it * almost realise the great poet ' s idea of the " crack Oack o > doom . " And when the ice had reached its greatesWteslil elevation , its ragged cliffs rising here and there wife witil fearful crevices between : when evervthiiw tha ? thai

      came within its reach had been torn , up , and tl % d thu shore had been lined with a most frightful chevau * wauu de-frize , composed of boards , woods , trees , and tiiHd tin *" ber , then-all motion ceased , and a solemn , oppresstyressivr silence reigned ova- the scene . Not a souna , not thnot th " slightest murmur came up from the usually roarforo arin * flood . " The sound of many waters , " which oritin ' ordutf " rily greets the visitor , was hushed as death . 1 * 1 . 1 ^ frost spirit laid his icy hand upon the troubled watoi" watcro and they were still . At the Devil ' s Hole , where tW tliii " rush and roar" is generall y so impressive , a gcn % genffi and noiseless current might be seen ; and even as % as w up as the whirlpool the water flowed on in muffle muffl « murmurs . The whole scene , with all its acceswnfessoriw was sublime and impressive . —American paper . ;> -.

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), May 24, 1845, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_24051845/page/4/