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Northern Star (1837-1852), 30th November 1850, Edition 2 of 3, Page 5

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      Infamous Conspiracy And Denial Of Justic...

      ^ batanfe s— -Mr . O'Connor fight piffle handed against the resources and thein-^ en ce of the National Treasury . # gnt while this straggle Mas going on , the prop rietor of a Nottingham newspaper made « false , calumnious , and malicionsattack npon ^ e personal honesty and honour of Mr . O ' Connor , by accusing him of having deceived { he people into g iving him a large sum of jnoney , which he had pat into his own pocket , jud nsed for his own purposes . Mr . O'Connor represented the town of Notting ham in Parliament , and the paper in question is the oro-an of the party opposed to him in politics . immediatelcommenced

      3 ji action was y a trainst the libeller hy Mr . O'Connor , and if ever a triumphant defence of character was made in a Court of Justice , it was by that « ontleman . But the Judge , Sir F . Pollock , Chief Baron of the Exchequer , who acted as a violent partisan throughout the trial , finished the proceedings by summing up the case in a . manner which exceeded even the violence and virulence of Mr . Roebuck , the defendant ' s counsel , and which produced ast onishment and disgust in the minds of every on epreseniin the Court , where such a specimen { , 'bad law and of rancorous personal prejudice and partisanship was exhibited on the judicial bench .

      The jury , influenced b y that summoning up , returned a verdict grossly inconsistent with itself , and oppressively unjust to Mr . O'Connor . They declared , in the same breath , that the libeller was justified in his statements , and that Mr . O'Connor ' s personal honesty was free from the slightest imputation . Again Mr . O ' Connor had vindicated his honour and integrity ; out , alas . ' the fatal game was played over again ~ "ItuiN him with Expenses !" The effect of the verdict was to throw npon him the whole costs of the trial .

      Besolved to struggle against this monstrous and unparalleled conspiracy to the utmost , and believing that he would yet find common justice on the Bench of England , Mr . O'Connor next moved for a new trial in the Court of Queen ' s Bench . A rule was granted , and again the case has been re-argued at an enormous expense . We give the result of that re-hearing with some comments thereon , in the following leading article from the Times—a journal the very reverse of friendly to Mr , O'Connor—b y no means disposed to criticise too severely the judges of the land , or any other of its institutions , yet whose thorough English detestations of mean , cowardl y , Jesuitical persecution and injustice , has dictated this severe critique : —

      A curious illustration of the peculiar principles of English jurisprudence * as afforded some days since in the somewhat remarkable case of" O'Connor v . Bradshaw . " The plaintiff had established an illegal Company , and persuaded the poor artisans Of the 2 Tprth 10 pay into its coffers something more than £ 100 , 000 . A fortunate scheme of this description naturally excites comment and opposition , and some persons having charged Mr . O'Connor -with having " wheedled the people of England out of a large sum of money , " he attempted , by legal process , to compel the proper officers to register his Company . The officersthe registrars , in fact , under the act of Parliament

      —refused to register his as > ociation or Company , slating as a reason that the Company was illegal . Thereupon Mr . O'Connor applies to the Court of Queen ' s Bench , and a rule to show cause why a mandamus should not issue to compel the registrar to register this Company was obtained . 2 fow , the real point at issue was whether this Company was a legal Company or not , and a large array of counsel was retained to argue that point ; tut at this moment another incident occurred . A journalist of the North thought proper to attack the promoters of ibe scheme , and thereupon an action for libel was brought against him . The action went to trial . Three days the trial lasted , and at the end of the third day the judge

      proceeded to sum up the evidence and deliver his charge to the jury . It had pleased the defendant to justify his supposed libel—that is , he set forth certain circumstances as a justification of bis assertions respecting the plaintiff . In describing the effect of this justification to the jury , the Lord Chief Baron , who tried tbe cause , stated that he conceived the Company , of which Mr . O'Connor was the head , to be an illegal association ; giving as two grounds for his opinion—first , that the Company purported to be a bank ; and , secondly , that it was in reality a lottery scheme . The jury gave a verdict for the defendant , tacking to their verdict an opinion that , notwithstanding all that was proved the plaintiff was free from imputation of personal dishonesty .

      A new trial was moved for , and tbe Court was told that the question of the illegality of this company was at this moment before the Queen ' s Bench ( the * libel case being before the Court of Exchequer ) , and the Court was intreated not to refuse a rule to show cause why a new trial should not te had , when possibly the Court of Queen's Bench mig ht decide that tins company was really a perfectly legal association . The rule to show cause was thereupon granted , and the argument eventually came on before the Queen ' s Bench—the only important point being whether this company was a legal association or not . Iflegal the registrar was bound to register the « ompany ; if illegal , he was

      justified in his refusal . A lon < r argument was heard—great pains were taken to prove , on tbe one side , that the association was illegal ; on the other , every circumstance which forensic ingenuity could adduce was brought forward to show that the whole scheme was per-/ ectlv in accordance with the law . In fact , « yerybody supposed that the only question being whether the association were legal or not , the Court desired to be enlightened on that point , and on that tbey would eventually give their judgment . Let it also be remembered that the Court of Exchequer bad { ranted the rule to show cause on the ground that the question of legality or illegality asre-- ^ „„»„ j t \ . ic nnmnirnr Tcno hpfnrp the Cnnrf . of tUlS vvtUlH

      ¦ pcuicu |<; " - »«» -- - - — Queen ' s Bench It so happened , however , that a preliminary question lay before the Court . The act of parliament declared that the provisions of the Registration Act ( 7 th and 8 th Victoria , chap . 110 ) related to joint stock companies established " for any commercial purpose , or for any purpose of profit "—and therefore the registrar could not be compelled to register ibis company , if it COUldnOt properly be considered a company established for any commercial purpose or for any purpose of profit . The Court of Queen ' s Bench thereupon set itself to ascertain whether the Company were of this description , and having in their judgment

      determined that it was not such a Company , it save judgment on this narrow point , and shirked ( there is no other fitting term ) the question of legality or illegality as regarded this Company . What was the consequence ? The Court of Exchequer was now compelled to entertain this question , let us however , remember that all the elements requisite for decision had been already before the Court of Queen ' s Bench . That Court knew all that could be known—had heard the arguments of the most learned men of tbe bar on the question—and therefore might safely have decided this point , aad thereby saved all farther discussion . They , howeveravoided the decision really submitted to them ,

      , and gave judgment on an accidental point . The question of legality , therefore , came again , before the Court of Exchequer on two grounds . First , the Company was in contravention of the Bank Act , ftb and 8 th Victoria , chap . 113 , and also , it was in direct opposition , as was said , to the various lottery acts . Long arguments were heard on these points ; again , all that industry aud knowledge could collect was submitted to the Court , and its opinion thereupon asked . And again the Court avoided a decision upon the points of illegality except upon one ground . The Company they say is illegal as it contraveneslhe Bank Act , " but as respects tbe Lottery Acts we give no opinion . "

      Kow on this point we nave no hesitation in assertingthatthe Court acted in a cowardly ( sic ; fashion . The Lord Chief Baron bad risked bis professional reputation upon the assertion that this Company was illegal under the Lottery Acts . Three of the four judges sitting on the bench were evidentl y of the same opinion ; but , because one of their numler had a doubt , they avoided giving an opinion on { his point , androde off upon the one single matter ¦ which justified their decision . Surely- this is not a just or politic proceeding We desire , to have a law certain and defined , and

      we wish to he able to obtaia x knowledge of what the law is . at a small cost . But here are two sets of judges ; both of whom were completely instructed , out both of whom escaped , ' - for purposes of personal easeand comfort : from giving Judgment upon x question ; raised designedly for then- . decision . , If the judgment of the Court of : Queen a Bench . had been given upon the whole subject , the . second argument would not Have been needed . Had the . whole question of the legality of this ; Cdmpariy , ai Tegarded . both grouads ^ ton determined by tbe Exchequer , further litigation would bo far have been prevent ^ ^ iU « jr one BBoppe * that a dwfce , io

      Infamous Conspiracy And Denial Of Justic...

      promote litigation led to this shrinking fronva'decision ; or that a , love , of ease , a wish to leave trouble on one side , was the real cause of this narrow judgment ? "Wh atever may be the cause , the result is mischievous as affecting the opinions of the world on the character of our judges and the law they administer . . Fellow Countrymen ! will you stand by and see the machinery of Government , and tne power of the Judicial Bench , thus exerted to crash an individual whose only crime is , that of having endeavoured , according to his own sincere convictions , to promote the welfare of the poorer classes , and who , but for your assistance , seems as though he must , ultimately , he overcome by the overwhelming force against which he has to contend ?

      We have shown , that from the commencement the movement was one of a purely public nature—that its objects were , in themselves , legitimate and praiseworthy—that all was done openly in the face of day—that the plan and the constitution of the Company were agreed to by public Conferences , after due deliberation—that there was no intention to act illegally , but , that on the contrary , every possible effort ,, accompanied by a very large outlay . has been made to procure legalizationthat Mr . O'Connor has , throughout , acted with the highest honour ; and , so far from having benefitted by the Company has , at the present moment , a considerable sum of his own money locked up in its funds .

      But the amount due to him for advances to carry on its operations , is not the whole expenditure it has cost him . For years he gave his undivided services to the Company , in travelling to examine and purchase estates , and in afterwards allotting them , and superintending the making of roads , and the erection of dwelling and school houses , npon them . In the performance of these duties he expended

      hundreds of pounds of his own . money , for which he never charged the Company a single farthing . He neglected his own affairs to attend to these duties gratuitously . From first to last the plan has brought nothing to him but hard labour , anxiety , suffering , and pecuniary loss . Had it succeeded to the utmost , he , as an individual , could have gained nothing by it . His only motives could have been of the purest , most unselfish , and patriotic kind .

      "Will it not reflect an everlasting disgrace and infamy upon the age , if such a man is allowed to be crushed by the perversion of the law , the denial of justice , and a systematic conspiracy to work his ruin by those who hold Legislative and Administrative power in this country ? Every honest man of every party and creed in the state , is bound in justice to himself and to his country , to come

      forward and aid in preventing the consummation of that conspiracy . If it succeeds , it will inflict a heavy blow upon the character of the nation ; it will furnish a precedent which may in after years be felt by others to their grievous cost , and it must strike at the very root of the confidence which the people at large now feel in the impartiality and justice of our legal tribunals .

      Chartists and Members of the National Land Company ! if Mr . O'Connor has claims npon the sympathy and aid of the public at large for the reasons we have given , he has still stronger and more direct claims upon you . It is your battle he is fighting—your interests and rig hts he seeks to promote and secure To your cause he has devoted his life and fortune . For the last sixteen years he has " laboured in season and out of season , " to improve your political and social condition . During that long period he has travelled thousands of miles , but he never eat a single meal , or paid a single mile ' s fare at the expense of the public . In the

      successive prosecutions which have taken place he has ever been found by the side of the poor man , 'whether in the prisoner ' s dock , or the cell of the gaol . In the one case his purse was liberally opened to procure the best legal advice and counsel , on the other , to soften the rigours of imprisonment , and to give comfort to the firesides deprived of their natural heads and protectors . Can it be possible that either time or change should have rendered yon forgetful or ungrateful ? Can it he within the bounds of probability that you willrefrain froman universal , simultaneous , and liberal subscription , to meet the liabilities he has incurred in this protracted and expensive litigation ?

      Recollect , that during all this time he has had to sustain the trouble , anxiety , and expense , alone . He has been struggling to maintain the interests of the members of the Land Company alike against its enemies outside , and the traitors and defaulters within . They who should have rallied round him in this arduous contest have shamefully stood aloof , or at best , contented themselves with mere words of approbation . But the time has now come when deeds must be substituted .

      Chartists ! we call upon yon to do your duty . There is no need for us to point out in detail what that duty is . Tour own hearts , if you consult them , will tell what yon owe in this moment of trial , to the man who has lavishly , generously , and mishrinkingly given his all to your cause . Be but to a small extent , each of you , -what he has been on a large scale , and the object will be achieved . You will

      show to the Government and the world , that you will not allow your leader to be crushed , and you will thereby impress them with a sense of respect for yourselves . The absence of such a demonstration will be ruinous to the cause of Chartism . Will not all parties treat those with contempt who have lost faith in their own energies : who fail to act justly to their own friends ?

      Members of the Land Company ! yon have an especial and a direct interest in this matter ! "We do not now speak of the higher obligations already g lanced at , which you are under to Mr . O ' Connor . "We speak of it simply as a matter of pounds , shillings , and pence , in which you are involved . If you stand idly by and see him borne down in the eontest with your enemies and his , depend upon it you will lose as well as he . If anything is to he saved for you from the wreck , which Government opposition , defective laws , unjust judges , and dishonest members have made of the Land Company , it is by Mr . O'Connor alone that that can be effected .

      Should the estates pass into the hands of lawyers , they will take care that not a man of you will ever get one penny back . Perhaps , if they can fasten upon any of you who are " worth powder and shot , " they may make you the subject of actions , which will add largely to what yon have already paid . Self-interest , in its lowest and most apparent shape , therefore , makes it incumbent on yon to come forward immediately and liberally --even if it were not equally evident that it is your duty , as members of the Company , to bear an equal share in its burdens , losses , and reverses . __ n . „ ,

      It is impossible that Mr . O'Connor can do a nations work . It is grossly ^ unjust ; and unfair of yon to expect it from him . Even so small a sum as one shilling *» « JWJ members of the Company , vorJd oe sufficient to meet the crisis , and enable Mr . O Connor to carry the Winding up Bill throug h Parliament next Session . That sum would - be a trifle to each of you j to exact it from Mr . O'Connor , after all his past sacrifices , would be the hei ght of injustice and ingratitude , even were he able to pay such a demand on your account . ; - : jt . is-said that trade is brisk , provisions cheap , ; and wages eood . Yon are . therefore ,

      in an unusuall y favourable condition at the present , moment in these respects .. -Come forward , ae ^ man & U y ^ iejierousjy , and take aahoaest . share of th ^ bajden B which

      Infamous Conspiracy And Denial Of Justic...

      equitably devolve * upo ^ of the Company . Come forward , and show the country at large that English working men aie honest and true hearted . That they are not repudiates of just claims—not ungrateful to those who labour and suffer for themnot deserters in the hour of danger and trial , either of the principles they profess , or of the leaders they have followed in time of sunshine .

      " Good men and true , " set to work in good earnest forthwith . Wherever a Committee exists , let it put in motion all its powers for the collection of subscriptions in its own locality . "Where there is no Committee , let a meeting be called , proper persons appointed , and a vigorous canvas commenced . There is no time to lose . The lawyers press for the payment of costs , amounting , we understand , to nearly £ 2 , 000 . Words , nor resolutions will not satisfy them . They demand money , —we ask action . Let every friend of the cause give his mite , and the difficulty will be easily overcome .

      To Nqve«Blir 30,1850._ .. The ! ,. .^O^T...

      to NQVE « BliR 30 , 1850 . _ .. THE ,. . ^ O ^ T , HE , Rg Jj . ^ AR . , , 5

      Events Of The "Week. The Space Occupied ...

      EVENTS OF THE "WEEK . The space occupied by the urgent matters alluded to in the " appeal , " necessarily excludes for this week other articles which had been prepared on general topics . We can only briefly glance at the leading events of the week . The Anti-Papal agitation continues to spread throughout the country . Several of the counties , including the great West Riding of York , have pronounced against the aggression . In one instance , what we feared , has occurred—the passions of the opposing parties over-mastered , not only their Christianity , but their humanity . Blood has been

      shed , and property destroyed in Birkenhead . The police force stationed in the town , was too weak to cope with the Koman Catholic rioters , and police and military have been sent from Liverpool to maintain the peace . The daily journals continue to occupy a large portion of their space with leaders , reports of meetings , and polemical controversy , and the public excitement seems to grow more earnest and intense . From the tone of a leading article in the Times of . Thursday , it maybe inferred that the Government are determined to take active measures against the new hierarchy . It concludes a vigorous commentary on a " pastoral" of the New Bishop of Birmingham in the following terms : —

      Equal civil rights to all of his faith , the freedom to teach what doctrines and perform what ceremonies he will , will be secured to him by the generosity of tho nation which he has foully libelled , but from that species of what he calls persecution , which consists in vindicating our Crown , from the insult of a foreign prince , in freeing the dioceses of our church from the intrusion of unauthorised strangers , and in wiping off from our land the reproach of yielding to foreign influence , which the very signature of his manifesto conveys—from such so-called persecution as this we waru him he is not secure .

      We tell him that the days of his episcopate are numbered , that it is not because his chair is built upon a rock , but merely because his appointment has been adroitly made during the recess of Parliament , that he is in the enjoyment of that seat the foundations ot which he dreams are eternal , and that , though it be not in the power of our legislature to prevent him from having been the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Birmingham , it will most assure * dly be their will , and be completely in their power , to provide that he shall he the last .

      An interesting and important conference of delegates from the Freehold Land Societies has been held at Birmingham , the proceedings at which will furnish matter for consideration next week , In the mean time , we may note , there are eighty of these societies with a great number of branches , and that they have 30 , 000 members , who have paid up about £ 170 , 000 . Some of them , it appears , ballot

      for allotments , precisely in the way that the National Land Company did . But they are not interfered with as illegal . No outcry is raised against them as gambling lotteries , In short , Mr . O'Connor and the Chartists , as a body , are not connected with them , and , therefore , they may act with impunity . How true it is , that one man may steal a horse scatheless , while another will get hanged for looking over the hedge !

      The National Public School Association has opened its campaign of agitation . Several meetings have been held under promising auspices , and excellent speeches delivered in support of the movement . National unsectarian education is the only effectual barrier against the restoration of priestly supremacy , and the consequent political and social degradation of the masses . All lovers of civil and p olitical , as well as religious freedom , are called upon to promote that object , therefore , to the fullest extent of their means .

      A strike of Glaziers , employed at the great Glass Show Box in Hyde Park , has come before the public through the medium of a police report . This new temple of competition is alread y beginning to show what tendency the system of which it will be an exhibition has upon the wages and the comfort of the working classes . The g laziers were required to do nearly a double day ' s work , as we understand , for ordinary , if not less than the ordinary wages . They refused to comply , and are on strike as a body . We shall endeavour to p lace the whole of the facts before our readers in our next .

      It will be seen , by a report in another column , that the Eastern Counties Enginedrivers' strike still continues , to the great injury of the public , and the destruction of the property belonging to the Company . From the appearance of a late shareholder at the last meeting , it may be hoped that the publicity g iven to the numerous oases in which the incapacity and ignorance of the new drivers leads to the destruction of engines , carriages , trucks , and merchandise—and the imminent

      danger caused to life and limb—will at length rouse that class to a sense of their true interests , in reference to this unfortunate dispute . With respect to Foreign Affairs , no material alteration is perceptible . Large armies are still on foot , and the diplomatists are still as "busy as the devil in a gale of wind ; ' * but what will be the upshot of it all , it is yet impossible to say . Upon one point there seems to be general agreement—we shall have no fighting at present . . How long " at present " will last , is uncertain .

      Monies, Received Fob Ihs Wxek Ending Thu...

      MONIES , RECEIVED Fob ihs Wxek Ending Thursday , IfovMOtfB 28 th , 1850 . FOB TH * WINDING-UP OF THE LAND COMPANY . Received by W . Ridee . — W . Davidion , Newton , Ayr Is —B , Wallace , Lochee Is—C . Potts and J . Hassall , Longton 2 i—From Leicester—John Neal 6 d—Joieph Neal 6 d—F . Neal 6 d—W . Howe , Northwich li . Received at Land Omci ,-J . Wilmot , Croydon Is—Cray , ford , per Wilson 3 f—Brighton , per Ellis as 66 %

      THE HONESTY FUND . Received by W . Aidkb . —Nottingham and New Radfordi per J . Sweet lis . FOR THE HUNGARIAN AND POLISH REFUGEES . Received by W . Ridjck . — W . Ovineton , Sunderland ll 6 d —Workmen at Messrs . Hawthorn ' s ani Co . ' s , Engae Works , Leith ( 2 nd sub . ) , per A Watson 7 s 6 d—The Old Radical Reformers , Halifax , per J . Brier £ 1 10»—Nottingham , per J . Sweet » s—Walsall , per R . Granger 7 i 6 d—W . Rowe , Northwich 6 d—Mr . Elliott 2 s . EXPENSE FUND . Received at Laud Omcs . —Brighton , Ellis 4 » Id . VICTIM FUND . Received at Land Office . — Mr . Wilson Is .

      The monies rewired by John Arnott wiH be . acknow lsdged next week .

      Bkkt-Gfrt Suoab.—Accordingtothe Last Ret...

      BKKT-gfrT Suoab . —Accordingtothe last return of the beW q 6 t , sugiir trade in France , , there were at tbe end of October 263 manufactories at . work , which was rather more than / at the same period last vear . Tbequantity ^ eUyeredforcons ^ gjnunes less than last year . ; - , >¦ ^ *¦¦• ¦ -

      '^ E ^ 2s5 Rw 'Erb ^Bt ' Ateb ': -L>Jf R...

      '^ ^ 2 S 5 ' ^ BT ' atEB ' : -l > Jf r -T : : '' EASTERN-COUNTIES RAILWAY . ; On Wednesday evening a public meeting of the engine-drivers and firemen late in the employment of the pastern Counties Railway Company , was held at . the George Inn , Stratford . The meeting was numerousl y attended . Mr . Jolly was called to thecliair . . ^ 9 ? AIRStAN addressed tho meeting , which ho said had been called for the purpose of laying -before the public , and the shareholders of the Eastern Counties Railway , the damage daily done to the property of the latter . Oi . ly one fortnight had elapsed since their last meeting , and , from the number of accidents that had occurred on the line

      in Question , the public would see that it was not so satisfactory to travel on as before , while the damage done to the property of the company was very injurious to the sh areholders . It would also be recollected that , under the old superintendent ( Mr . Hunter ) ,-there was always a sufficient quantity of locomotive power , while , under the present management , should an accident occur to an engine , where there are two of one pattern , they were obliged to take the machinery from one to repair tho other . ( Hear , hear . ) If this state of things was allowed to continue , it was quite clear the working expenses could not be met , nor would there be anything left for a dividend for the shareholders . ( Hear . ) The Chairman then entered into a statement in

      reference to a variety of accidents that had occurred on the Eastern Counties line from tho 12 th of November up to the 26 th inst . On the 12 th , the eight o ' clock train from London , on arriving at Cambridge , ran past the ticket platform at a rate of twenty miles an hour , instead of stopping there , in order that the tickets might be collected . The consequence was , that it nearly came into collision with the Wisbeaoh passenger train , just leaving the Cambridge Station , and the greatest confusion was produced by the circumstance . On the 13 th , a serious collision took place on the Fakenham branch of the Eastern Counties Railway , at Elliam Station . A passenger train was standing at the station , and before the train was clear on the main line , a

      goods train carne up . The driver ran past the signal , pitched into the passenger train , broke' the buffer plank of his engine , and smashed two of the carriages ., Fortunately , the carriages that were broken had no passengers in them , or else their lives must have been sacrificed . On the same day , the engine with 11 . 30 ' a . m . train , from London , broke down at Elsenliam , and the train was taken on by another train , and was half an hour late . On the same day , No . 103 engine was injured , at March station , which caused great delay . On the 14 th tho up mail train from Norwich struck on Cambridiiebank with three carriages , this arose from a deficiency of : steam . On tho 15 th the axle-box of 180 engine was broken , and was otherwise so injured .

      that it is a complete wreck . This engine was built by Mr . Stephenson , and one of the best engines the company bad . This injury arose from the inefficiency of the driver . On the samo day engine No . 00 was severely burnt . On the same day they were so short of engines , that the engine from London , with the parliamentary train , had to proceed throughout to Yarmouth , instead of stopping at Cambridge , and returning back to London . On the 16 th inst ., as the goods train from Colchester was passinp the Victoria station , a passenger train from Woolwich came in collision with it , to the great alarm of the passengers . On the 17 th , engine 196 , with a special train of goods , was severely bunt at Bishop Stortford . The

      driver has since been sent by Mr . Gooch to grease truck wheels . The same day engine 169 , with a goods-train attached , broke down at Romford . Several portions of the engine were severely injured and broken , and a delay of three hours was the consequence . This accident arose from the neglect of the driver . On the 19 th the train that should leave Cambridge at a quarter-past seven o ' clock a . m ., did not leave until eight , in consequence of an en gine being off the rails and blocking up the line . On the same day the Peterborough goods-train , due at 7 . 30 p . m ., did not arrive until 3 o ' clock a . m . Engine 85 was severel y burnt , and had to be taken into Cambridge by engine 87 , the driver of which in doing so broke her buffer-plank . There were

      various occasions where goods and other trains were delayed considerably beyond their time . On the 23 rd the engine with the Cambridge goods train broke down at Bishop Stortford , and was unable to proceed , and seven or eight hours elapsed before assistance could be given from Cambridge . On the 25 th , engine 87 came into collision at Chesterford station with a truck laden with grain , which was smashed to pieces , knocked the engine off the rails , broke the buffer-plank , and blocked both lines of rails , arid detained the first train a considerable time . On tha same day . the train from Yarmouth , due at Cambridge at 11 . 35 p . m ., did not arrive until 2 . 30 , in consequence of the engine breaking down at Brandon . No .- 23 engine ^ was broken to pieces on the

      same day . at Norwich . Engine 84 ( a new one ) was severely burnt between Stratford and London , owing to the inefficiency of the driver . Jfo . 143 engine was so injured on the same day , that both it and tho machinery were rendered useless . On November 26 th the 5 . 30 p . m passengers train , from Wisbeaoh , ran into a goods-train at Swansea , and a lady was seriously injured / . and had to be carried from the train to her own . carriage ; knocked the goods-break off the rails , and did considerable damage to tho engine ; the engine was one of Mr . Samuel's patent , the Cambridge , and was built by Mr . Adams , of Fairfield-works , Bow . There were also several other oases mentioned by the chairman , all of which tended to show that the new drivers were inefficient and careless persons .

      Mr . Bhown , formerly a shareholder of the Eastern Counties Railway , said he attended that meeting to express his sympathy with the dismissed drivers from that railway . ( Hear , ) He looked upon them to be an injured class of men , and he must say that , since they had been driven from the line , he did not think it safe to travel by that railway . ( Hear . ) He believed that the accidents stated by the chairman were only a portion of those that really occurred , and many of which he believed took place at night . He was quite sure that , if the public only knew the real merits ot this case , " they would see that justice were done to the men . He would recommend them to make an appeal to the public . ( Hear . )

      The Chairman begged to express his acknowledgments to Mr . Brown for his attendance there that evening , and for his kind suggestion . They were by these meetings making an appeal to the public , by pointing out to them the accidents which were daily occurring on the Eastern Counties line , and showing them the risk they ran in travelling by it while tho locomotive department was in its present hands . ( Hear . ) Mr . Gooch said he would save tho Company £ 30 , 000 a year by his new ' system . His belief , wasi that instead of saving anything , he ' would cause a large additional outlay , arising from the injuries done to the engines and the machinery generally . ( Hear . ) After a short discussion , thanks were given to the chairman , and the meeting separated .

      City Of Dublin Municipal Elections. We D...

      CITY OF DUBLIN MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS . We direct the marked attention of the Chartists to the subjoined spirited specimen of an independent and fearless Irishman ' s address to the Burgesses of one of the City wards . The whole city is in commotion about the threatened abolition of that sink of iniquityand political prostitution—the Vice-Royal establishment . The old Confederates , the admirers of the noble and brave . . Mitchel—the supporters of the gifted Meagher , and the self-sacrificing O'Brien , have joined the packed jurors and jury packers , in loud laudation of Lord Clarendon and vice-royalty . Was ever such baseness , such cowardice , such treachery heard of till now ? Ear be it from us to blame the

      old Castle loafers and tuft-hunters ; but we do blame the brawling , opened-mouthed Clubbists and Confederates , who have sold themselves to this great : iniquity . It appears , by Tuesday ' s Freeman , that one . man alone , whom we knew was not a Cos * federate ; but a staunch unflinching Chartist , has the moral courage to brave the storm , and denounce such baseness in his sarcastic and withering address to the burgesses . But what is most surprising of all is , that forty burgesses—one-tenth of the whole constituency of the ward—had the manliness to vote for , him . We should have thought that he would not get five to vote for him , under such adverse circumstances .

      It appears , also , by the Freeman ' s Journal , that there exists a Liberal club in the Ina's Quay Ward , most of whom were Confederates ; and what bare these consistent patriots done ? they have returned the man who assisted Lord John . Russell to pass the Felony Act , so as to enable him to arrest and transport the hero Mitchel before the end of the Easter holidays of the memorable 1848 . John Reynolds , Esq ., M . P ., Lord Mayor of tho city of Dublin , represents the Liberal burgesses of the Inn ' s Quay Ward . They are worthy of each . We are rejoiced to . see that such men as those rejected O'Higgins , whose principles , the Freeman says , are in advance of tho age .

      " INN'S QUAY WARD . " Patrick : O'Hwgins respectfully solicits the votes , and the early attendance of the honest and independent burgesses of this Ward , on Monday , November 25 th . He neither expects nor desires the votes of slaves ^ sycophants , nor place-beggars , nor even of those who assemble iu chains , in this '' proclaimed city'' for the amusement of vioeroyalty ¦ \ r ::.:.- ' U y .: ,-: ¦ ,,. n . ¦¦ . ' . ¦ -. ¦ ••¦ . ' "" • .,. ' «; 15 j North Anne-street , November 23 rd .

      'I S.Nijdidb.R-O ' N'Monday[Morning Mr. ...

      'i S . niJDiDB . r-O ' n'Monday [ morning Mr . John Crofts , of Grown ^ yard ^ ongrrow ,- formerly a hairdresser f « iding .. on . the ; Longprowj . Nottingham , committed suipibXbybangingTumself ... He has been uva yery ^ B ^ dndi pgstate ;^ . ; B . Orije ; ; tiu > e past ; ' ' ¦ ¦¦ ¦ -- ;

      National Association Of • United Trades....

      NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF UNITED TRADES . T . S . DracoMM , Esq ., M . P .,. PrwidW . . IstabUshed 1845 . " hat JUSTIIIA . " "If it were possible for the working classes , by combining among themselves , to raise , or keep up the general rate of wages , it need hardly be said that this would be a thing not to b » punished , but to b « welcomed and rejoiced at- " Stoaet Jim .

      When we selected the above quotation from the writings of Mr . Mill , tbe celebrated writer upon Political Economy , we did so from a thorough conviction , that by combination alone will it ever be possible to " raise or keep up the general rate of wages , which , while he , by his hypothetical ' if , ' seems to doubt , he freely admits to be a desideratum , if it can be accomplished , to be welcomed and reoicedat . - We do not say , or ever have said , that the work ing classes ever can , by any combination , advance

      the wages of labour to so extravagant a heigth as to encroach upon the fair and legitimate rights of Capital . Any such attempt would surely fail , and recoil with just severity upon the unwise aggressors . We believe there are three parties whose interests must be consulted and mutually conserved , whenever this question of wages approaches to a solution—the Capitalist , the Labourer , and the Public ; but the two latter are so intimately connected in interest upon this question that wo may treat them as one .

      If , by a combination of capital , or by the uncontrolled licentiousness of individual capitalists , the labourer , as at present , is robbed of his just share of the value of his production ; the public share with him the wrong , and have , to some extent , to compensate him , from its own purse , for the injuries inflicted on him . Three-fourths , at least , of our existing Poor-rates represent the penalty in constant payment by the public for their criminal apathy in permitting this constant fleecing of labour by avaricious and unscrupulous men like the PerryB of Wolverhampton .

      It is not , therefore , against the institution of capital , when kept within its just limits , that we , by the combination we are endeavouring to organise , seek to array ourselves . It is not against that useful and honourable class who , while claiming and maintaining their own just rights , are desirous of conceding the equally just rights' of others , against whom we seek to protect ourselves ; but it is against that parasitical , fungoid excrescence , which has grown to such frightful dimensions , that it threatens like a foul corroding canker , to sap and destroy the vitality of the industrial economy , and to convert honest labourers either into miserable paupers , or into equally miserable anarchists . It is to save British industry from

      either horn of this dire dilemma that we invoke the working classes to combine . For , surely it is by combination alone , a mobilisation of labour , that this calamity , which is already present , but looms in still more fearful , gigantic proportions , in the distant future , can be averted . The capitalist of this diseased class have no sentiments in connexion with honourable minds . Truth , justice , honour , humanity are with them words without meaning . Their solemn assurances are like dicers' oaths—unmitigated purjuries . The God of their idolatry is money ; and , with true Jesuitical logic , they account all means sanctified which may be necessary , to enable them to arrive more speedily at the goal of their ambition .

      We have been led into these reflections by a retrospective meditation upon the Wolverhampton struggle . We have here striking examples of the two classes of capitalists we have been describing , Mr . Walton and Mr . Shoolbred have each said , that whenever an article that they are in the habit of making becomes so depreciated in marketable value by the competition of less scrupulous rivals , as to prevent them paying a fair value to the workmen , they will cease to manufacture it . We know this is no mere assertion . It is with them a practical truth . There is no man , to our knowledge , that has ever charged , or ever whispered , a single act of oppression against either of those gentlemen . There they are , the respected and honoured of their workmen .

      Let us now contemplate the position of the Perrys . Driven by the very desperateness of their case to every mean and ungentlemanly subterfuge ? To-day , E . Perry engaged in a bad use of his influence to get the poor pauper Hallet mulcted of bis parish allowance , as a means of forcing his son to submit to his exactions . Then , falling upon Haines with tiger vindictiveness , for a violation of an agreement for three years , entered into eight years before , and sending him to prison and the

      treadmill , for twenty-one days , for being absent from his work two hours . Upon another occasion , dragging a poor man from his home , from his sick wife , and dead , unburied child , and with the full knowledge of these dreadful facts , and because the poor man seemed himself too ill to be of the slightest use in the factory , pressing for his committal to gaol . Sending out his emissaries , and even himself penning the most palpable untruths , to seduce men to leave other employments to enter into engagements with him . is verbatim of of his missives

      Here a copy one , sent to a John Manton , formerly the secretary of the Tin Plate Workers' Society of Wolverhampton , but at this time ( October ) , working for Mr . Griffiths , of Birmingham : — " Sir , —Now that matters are settled , and all things ( is ) quiet , whenever you are disposed to come over here I will find you a situation , and it you can bring , or send me two or three others , I can find room for them in my manufactory , if they are decent workmen . " I am , sir , " Yours respectfully , "E . Perry . "

      Now , what honourable man , with a full daily experience , that the matters he alludes to , that is , the dispute between him and the Tinmen , were not settled , that things wore very far from being quiet ? What truthful man would stoop so low to send such a letter to a working man ? And , even now , what an honourable and charitable mission this man and his brother , accompanied with an atterney's clerk , is engaged in . Several of the men whom he has succeeded in inveigling into these agreements by such means as we have exposed , finding themselves so grossly deceived , have left the town , leaving , in many cases , their wives and families to follow them , when they get other work . The Perrys have been visiting their wives to know if they are nob in distress , and whether he shall ( good , kind creature ) use his influence to get them assistance from the parish ; and thus , by making them

      recipients to the pauper fund , bring their husbands chargeable for deserting their families , and so induce the parish to prosecute . This is a dodge , which for its excessive ingenuity and meanness , is well worthy of its author , but we hope the wily Jesuit will be disappointed in his wolfish designs . We , last week , informed our members and readers , of the latest and most brilliant conception of these perfectly original brothers , in importing a batch of foreigners , for the very honourable purpose of beating down the value of British labour . We don't know which most to admire , the supreme folly , or the extreme wickedness of this last , and , we think , the very last move . We are , this week , in a condition to g ive an authentic narrative of the mode and terms of their seduction , which , as we hinted , is marked throughout with a total disregard of truth or honesty .

      It appears Mr . ex-Town Councillor George Henry Perry was despatched upon a family mission to Paris , to beat up , for recruits , having so signally failed in England and Scotland , where he went upon the same mission . He was introduced , through an interpreter , to some Parisian tin . men , to whom he described , in glowing colours , the something more than Californian treasures which awaited such fortunate individuals as would return with him to Wolverhampton . He spoke a most unwilling truth in one instance—that he could riot get hands enough upon his terms . ( Aside . ) That the trade was never so busy , ( true again , try lucky accident , ) and that he had an intention of introducing the French style ( of tin pots we

      suppose ) to the English public , who , under the Free Trade regine , were growing tired of the strong and useful , and had , under the teachings of economist Wilson , Bright and Co ., become violently enamoured of the cheap and nasty . A great deal of this palaver , either expressed or implied , passed . The Frenchmen listened to the empassioned bursts of eloquence of the pugnacious George . One of them , more curious than the rest , hinted a query , " Was there any strike in the affair ? " Without the slightest hesitation , the truth-loving George Henry assured them to the contrary . "No , it was simply the extreme pressure of business—the shortness of hands , ( thank God for it , ) and the passion of the English people for novelty . ' ^ . This , and we suppose much more of the same admixture , of one part truth and nine lies , the approved formula of the " Perrian specific" was said , and the game was fairly bagged—seven Frenchmen and

      one Polish Refugee , eight in all , and not ten , as we had been erroneously informed , —agreed upon a small pecuniary advance being lent them , to leave "la btllt France , " and trust their fortunes to " perftde Albion : " - we had almost written " perfide " G . H . ex-Town Councillor Perry . They arrived in due course , but no agreements we are told , were actually signed until after their arrival , when six signed engagements for two years , upon the following terms : — " The money advanced to be . paid by instalments from their Weekly earnings ; George Henry to bold their passports and books , ( their books being to them of great importance , containing their characters , which have to be shown to the prefect and employers before they can get another shop ) as collateral security for the repaymentbfthe ; money .. They are to receive twentyfiye . shillings per week for the first three weeks , * n d as , rnucb as they can earn ( at Perry's prices we suppose ) afterwards . Poor dupes . .

      National Association Of • United Trades....

      After the agreements were fairly " signed ,- it turned out that the Frenchmen had ; in theirlgnorance of English money , fallen into a sad mistake as to the value of an English shilling , and had understood it to mean a florin , about one shilling and eightpence , to them rather a serious error . Up to Saturday last they had worked four days , and one with the other had earned the enormoua sum of one and sixpence each , per day . Their earnings in Pans are said to have been from thirty to forty francs ,. being from twenty-five to thirtythree shillings and fourpence per week , and living to be obtained for about one shilling and a halfpenny thinkfrom

      per day . We , this statement of undoubted facts , that the Perry ' s have not much improved their position , even if the agreements are not cancelled by the magistrates , for gross fraud and deception , practiced upon men totally ignorant of the language in-which they are written , or of their legal or presumed legal effect , because we still retain our opinion of their Utter illegality . But what shall we say to the cause , and to the men who can stoop to such practices , to accomplish their detestable designs upon the rights and freedom of Englishmen ? Wo can have no fear for the result—it is not possible that such knavery

      can succeed . We turn from this disgusting subject to one of a more pleasing character . The reduction , which we announced last week as having been offered to the thick wire drawers of Birmingham , has , by tbe energy and promptitude of the Central Committee , been withdrawn , and the men have returned to their work at their old prices . We rejoice at this , because the reduction offered , if successfully accomplished , would not only have seriously affected tbe whole of a numerous and very hard working body of men in Birmingham , but would have thrown out of work entirely every alternate man , which would again have had a tendency to have stillfurther depreciated the value of the labour of those left in employment .

      Whatever benefit could have accrued lo the employer could have been hut short-lived , because other employers would have been driven to tho same course of conduct , and the only ultimate effect would have been a deep direct injury to a numerous body of industrious men , and a probable increase in the poor rates of the district , without the slightest compensating benefit to any other individual . We therefore feel proud of Mr , Green ' s success , who acted in this case with his usual discrimination and promptitude . His interview with the manager having been unsuccessful , he instantly issued a hand bill , detailing the particulars of the dispute , got them well circulated in tbe district , despatched them by the first post to all parts of England and Wales

      where this business is carried on , and called n public meeting at the Public-Office , where the whole affair was submitted to the ordeal of public opinion . A copy of the bill was also forwarded to Mr . Brown , the proprietor of the works , at Halifax . In a few days that gentleman arrived in Birmingham , and the manager in Monmoutholme ( from whence he originally came } to seek for hands . But judge of his surprise and mortification when he found the men fully prepared to meet him , with a salutation to this effect , " Well , Smith , you have been at your old tricks again in Birmingham , but it will not do . If you expect to get men here you are mightily deceiving yourself , " & o . The affair was known through the length and

      breath of the land , and Mr . Brown being granted an interview with Mr . Green , elected to forego the contemplated reduction , and that the men should return to their employment , which they did imme . diately . Here is another proof of the power of combination . For upwards of three years have this body been connected with the National Association , and every attempt by their employers to encroach upon their privileges during that period has met with a successful resistance . The system of block rent has been abolished , and mutual preliminaries , between some of the principle employers and the men , to regulate the number of apprentices upon somo fixed and equitable basis . With these facts before them is it not surprising that tbey do not rally round this movement in their thousands , and make it a truly National defensive confederation of British

      labour ? A mighty league , whose behests are conceived injustice , and exercised in moderation , should be irresistible . Tho equitable adjustment of wages would then in every trade be found to be shorn of all its difficulties . Labour Boards , composed of masters and workmen in equal proportion , and presided over by some competent and impartial president , would soon be able to discover the just means which wages should bear to profits , and the haphazard scrambling of the present system superseded by some fixed principle , subject to such variations as the laws which affect and regulate the value o f productions would suggest , and not asnow , to be left to the mercy or the caprice , or rapacity of a mere section of the profitmongers , who force the more honourable to follow their bad example and practices . Wm . Peel , Secretary . 250 , Tottenham-court-road .

      Abergavenny , November 26 th . Respected Friends , —Having read in the last Northern Star an account of a person of the name of Perry , of Wolverhampton , wishing to catechise the magistrates of that place , because they decided in favour of tbe sons of toil , against himself , he baring no argument to support his observation , must resort to mean subterfuge , which none , but those who are deficient in the sterling truths of moralty and religion , would condescend to , by making such personal remarks as itinerant Chartists . Every honest man will admit , that the magistrates , or any other body of men , sitting as arbitrators on any point , have a right to avail themselves of the evidence of any man , or body of men , who could throw a light on the subject ; aud he must be a knave , indeed , who would wish to confine it to class , creed , or colour .

      I should be sorry to interfere between men and their employers , but when such observations are made by persons who we ought to expect better from , I can do nothing less than stamp my mark of disapprobation on such conduct . I have not had any correspondence with you on any subject before . Nevertheless , I have attentively watched our proceedings , and , as a body , I admire your care to abandon strikes , and SubstU tuting arbitration , it being wise , friendly , easy , and cheap ; while strikes are difficult , useless , and injurious , alike to employers , men , and the trading community at large . But , if either party will not submit to reason , the evil must rest at their own door .

      Men , generally , are not fit judges in their own matters ; therefore a third party is more sure to determine rightly . Your object seems to be justice to all ! I have , therefore , enclosed you five shillings as a donation to your general fund . Wishing you success in your undertaking , and when tyranny should be attempted by either the employers or the employed , you , as rational beings , will step in , and by reason and friendship , decide for or against , as the case may be . Hoping

      that—Virtue may be your safeguard , And your guiding star , That stirs up reason , When our senses err . With best respects to friend Buncombe , and all of you , I remain , thine , very truly , Thomas Coos Ingram , Wholesale and retail Ironmonger , and dealer in Tin goods . To W . Peel , secretary , 259 , Tottenham-court-road , London .

      Robbeut.—A Little After Midnight, On The...

      Robbeut . —A little after midnight , on the morning of Saturday last , the g ate-keeper of the Brockloch tollbar , on the Carpsnairn and Dalmellington road , was roused from his bed by a halloo , as if some person wished to pass the gate . On opening the door he was seized by four men in the garb or labourers , and having their faces blackened , who instantly bound him and his wife and daughter , who were the only inmates , and proceeded to ransack the premises , threatening to burn the house unless money was given them . They at last obtained £ 8 in a pocket-book , one pound odd in silver , in addition to a great quantity ef wearing apparel , deliberately throwing aside their own unwashed rags , and arraying themselves in clean comfortable

      garments from the toll-wife ' s press , They packed up blankets , stockings , and a . varity of bulky articles ; but the bales being too' heavy for transport , they did riot carry them away . After getting all the plunder they could they , departed , showing no violence to their prisoners , whom they left bound hand and foot , locking the door on the outside to prevent pursuit . The toll-bouse is a considerable distance from neighbours , so that tbe thieves got fairly off . Four men , supposed to be the parties who committed the robbery , were seen in Maybole in the course of Saturday , in which place they disposed of part of the stolen property . They were traced to Ayr the same night , and one of the party was apprehended in a lodging-house in Wallacetown on Sabbath evening . —Ayr Advertiser . City op London lMpRoyaMSNTS .- « . It in intended by a new act to be applied for in the ensuing session of

      parliament , amongst other purposes , to take power , withoonsent of the cathedral -authorities , " to lay part of the ground area or space in the west front of St . Paul ' s Cathedral into the public Uteet , ' and alto to compel the consumption of smoke . in all furnaces and . fireplaces uaed for manufacture * or tradeipurposes ; and to remove more effectually other nuisances , encroachments , obst p " 0 tl 0 / l ?! P ^ l ections , and annoyances . Various additional poweri to the Sewers' Commission with respect to sewers , slaughter-houies , & o ., are also to be applied ftr .-* i ¥ Zi' n-lm , «« . Jit is very generally rumoHred thSsS lord !? t ? Mfip ^ diJyVpoint ^ (** veJno ^ S SuS tbe tone and spirit of his letter to Lord extraordinary course of approving and encouraging . aJfo'P ^ pMT W 7 V

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 30, 1850, page 5, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_30111850/page/5/