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- ^ T ^ ned the ' door they walked . The IS « V « k « Wbatwe the acts ai the Assembly ? i * " not ' its resolution ? Yes , distiuctlyyarid & Hi shall publish one proposed by Mr Adams I n ference * a large portion of his attack . ' . fi *! ^{ ie re solutions to which I refer shall be an * to the charge of blarney' agains "; myself . ^ j "As t ° E ^ " ! ltire not ^ S dismissed by Assanbl y , appointing five others appeared very ^ ^ ffhfl ' e my acceptance of office as one of the Entire pr ° Testwa t ^ S — first 1 J » that I was riot PCdrfcen fr ° m the ranka by a set of natribyp pismires : and secondly , that as I did 8 o , f ^ fc termined to recommend the old organisation , 1 ' a jendeied the Chartist movement perfectly f ^ T ' sly acceptance of office «« long after the % Mj h » d died a natural death . I was elected M * T j peop le and not by the Ajsembly ,. and by ^ ns » Ie I w « and ata determined to stand . - ^^ , - , f in 11 ¦ it , it--
& is the' Northern Star stands as a book of PjLje when it is supposed that it may be nsed ^ Lj me , I defy any of ray accusers to point out ^ sing le line in that paper confirming the asser-** tot I admitted the legality of an association •^ tjng of m ore than forty-nine members ; but , on ^ con trary , I stated in the Star of the 6 th of May vtfs . no * ontaMr M'Grath told mj on the 15 th of jLj that the London men were to elect ei ght jjtffiesto the Assembly , that I was aware of the S ^ ded illegali ty ; what elicited the answer from L . M'Grath was this , as published in the Star : ^ don / said he , Ms to elect eight delegates . ' . ften , said I , ' is the rest of the country but to Mfortj-one ?
_ __ jls this question of legality or Illegality is sought pi * based npon my pnsumed legal knowlege . al-^ diffusely scattered over thewholeindictment , iffjlT answer it continuously . tfhen the Convention was sitting , it will be res tored that my visits to it were only casual , and jjun hurried ; that I merely made SHch statements as I thought necessary , and was then compelled to atgad to my duties in Parliament—and the delegates -51 remember that I requested them to sign a petiti on behalf of Frost , Williams , and Jones ; that g : v did sign the petition , and that it was brought to at , ' I think , by Mr Murray , a clerk at the Land
( gee , at the last moment for presenting petitions , j presented it . Sir Robert Inglis and others looked jjit , and counted the names , and . having discovered gat there were fifty-one signatures , it was moved Ha t it be rejected , u the law did not recognise gore than forty-nine delegates meeting in convention . I went to the Convention the next morning , loot the petition with me , and told them what fools they must have been ¦ to have given me a petition gjned by two more than the law permitted to sit jn ' cnch an Assembly , and that I was not at all aware fin t it consisted of more than forty-nine members I hen , as to the Convention of 1839 , it did not tonsist of more than forty-nine members .
Ag ain , the Convention in 1842 , in Manchester , jgd not consist of forty-nine members ; but these grjbes-so ignorant of Chartist matters—presume ggi because there were fifty-nine included in the lincaster indictment , that they must « # have been iielejates ; whereas , from fifteen to twenty consisted H'defendants from different parts of the country , that sever had anything to do with the Convention ; for instance , the Rev . Mr Scholefisld , in whose ] iOflse the Convention assembled , had nothing to do tiththe Convention : and it shall always be my p ride and my boast , that my rejection of the address , submitted to that Convention , saved the delegates from a lone imprisonment .
Then , as to the Stnrge Conference , I would be only too happy , to morrow , to make a delegate in a Conference of four hundred or four thousand , to save the PEOPLE'S CHARTER from such men asBrewster , Etchie , the middle classes constituting the Jury dus , even backed by such men as Cochrane , and , I think , Adams , who voted in that Conference for fee abandonment of the name of the PEOPLE'S CHARTER . There is , however , one most important fact , and one which must not be lost sight of , touching the fiasrenee of the law ' s nicety before and after the JOik of ApriL Man nay brave imprisonment at tome , even at the expense of the folly of others , as I have done—but these critical lawyers , so full of
feels , but deficient in dates , appear to have forgotten lilt , on the very night of the 10 th of April , after felt national triumph , which the Ten Thousand Founders and the National Assembly wholly , utterly , cd \ entirely destroyed—but I trust only for a fee—Sir George Grey explained the provisions of his Gagging Bill , making open and advised jpakmg felony , and the publication of it also felony . This was giving despotism a power and a might against which right could not successfully contend , and had it not been for the timely dispersion of that Assembly , wherein a few cowards would have influenced the minds of brave em , the long catalogue of expatriated victims mold have struck & deadly blow at Chartism .
The Attorney-General declared Chartism , as attempted to be organised by Adams and Co ., as ille * gal , but never has declared that Chartism , sbpropounded by me , is illegal ; but these three wise am say : — 'Well , and are all things to be held as illegal which ' a TOa ? Attorney-General chooses to call so ! Splendid authority , certainly ! Upon the lame authority , Mr O'Connor is & sedition-monger , a libeller , and a conspirator ; kit will Mr O'Connor plead guilty to these charges , limply because the Whig and Tory Attorney-General who jreferred these chartes againit him said to !' This is an extremely enthusiastic appeal , but my answer is , that Mr O'Connor pleaded Not Gnilty' to those charges , bnt , unfortunately for Mm , Special Juries declared him' Guilty . '
4 tbk The Chartist power is to be measured by numbers or funds , and we are told that our _ former safety was attributable more to our inherentjpoverty ad weakness than to the superior wisdom of its acknowledged leader . Well , the National Assembly ws certainly weak in numbers , but wished to make anends in wealth by substituting a £ 10 , 000 fond for onr poverty . othly . As to my acknowledging the National
Assembly to be a fair representation ef the Chartist Qind . in the' Star' of the 6 th of ilay . it was based upon the natural presumption that they would do their duty to the Chartist body—a pTesnmption , howcrer which every day ' s experience iaught me was iH-founded . 1 was deceived in the same way at the list General Election , when I anticipated great Clings from the fact of 260 new members being chosen tvho were likely to be influenced by the propesmg mindof the age .
Glhly . As to the conversation so critically re-Ported in the indictment , between Mr Adams and ^ O'Connor , on the question of legality ; net one ford of it ever occurred . 7 tbly . Mr O'Connor is not answerable for Mr park ' s proposition i it would be hard if he was , particularly as Mr O'Connor never directly or indirectly interfered with the election of delegates to any Con * Tention that ever sat , and had not time to hold a &gie conference with the Executive during the Etting of the Convention .
8 thly . With regard to a larger number than fortyi tine , I should have had no objection to a larger and Store comprehensive Convention , representing ALL CUSSES FRIENDLY TO THE MOVEMENT , * ° present a memorial to the Qaeen , praying for the ^ solution of Parliament—the dismissal of ministers "tod the appointment of men who would make the CHARTER the ' law ef the land . In such an as-*? % of all classes , including the jury class , there tt itkt have been safety , and the scribes forget that fl * one and simple duty is defined—namely , that tf Presenting the memorial . 9 t % . The scribes deny that because there was
^ effensite resolution passed , that , therefore , there ^ no offensive language used towards Mr O'Con-* & Now , for the contradiction of their false as-** onf I refer to the delegates—to the daily papen J ™ eh ; jffere flashed in my face every eveninu when 1 entered the House of Commons—and to the secret ^ ngs of the Scotch delegates , which were held * £% by a band of conspirators ; and I think that * J fact admitted by the scribes , that , without r ^ dting me , they dismissed me from the j ^ cutive ; and then , curiously enough , they refer to zf ' 5 ft » ' of the 13 th of May in proof of my acjp Sttnce in what they did a fortnight before , tnd * An ther a whimsical charge against me , that I hive to than
j ^ tt submitted this insult rather be >« of contention . However , I am well pleased ^ the taunt . J 0 % As to my use of the words ' WAIT , JJTCi WAIT , ' I really do not know how to 2 ™* r them . I caa only say , that if all , or as I hare jv ^ d before , that if one-half of those professwg wj * t f principles worked for a month as I have y ^ «» England for the last fifteen years , that you ¦ JJwt have to wait t day for the Charter . ^ : - Coma the charge of cowardiee on the 10 th 3 j $ jW . and this charge Mr Adams shall answer hia-^ ° J ipeech ind resolution . The speech delivered uJ ^ Hth , the day after the Kennington Common to ^ Si andthe resolution proposed on the 14 th , of j ^ 1 &&K to Mr O'Connor ' s blarney , ' but eer-^ 7 ifttt thU Ten Thousand Pound * wm aware of
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SStiSf ft " ^ ^ also after he - ~ aware that , the Convention . 1 hadnde $ ded ? iH > attMr h £ Sl ° ^ " for the ChartershouW nottbe brought forward . Here is Mr , Adamsi speech , de-^« e ? « " » Tuesday * the llth of April , at a ° ^ GR , 1 A J CHARTISr MEETING AT THE LITE . MRY AND SCIENTIFIC INSTITUTION - ¦ JOHN STREET , FITZROY SQUARE ' Now , curious to say . Mr Adams was the first from the Northern Star ' . ol the 15 th of April sS ^ swwwia .- ,
cnaracter of con » istenc > to prewWeMwelTai ttTatTf SSXifir- " - ' ' 7 ? ? tad iKSTJSK S « % »? £ w ? peaceful and moral , and yestirda , SSJX * *™?? OH " o ~ 8 l ™ a demonstraUoaof tbek pe « efnl moral force , not to give battie . ( Loud cheers ) AMwughbe was one of tho ? e who held the doctrine « morally tf we may , forcibly if we mnsf ( Loud cheem . ) Bnt , t ™^ V e 3 ih *^ » 0 « l means first ( Hear , hear ! l ? f w "JfffJ * tbe ^ n ^ ntion with hU Ufe in hii n * nd , bnt still that was no reason he should commit sul . Ciae- ( hear , iearj-and he did not think they had showed any want of courage . He had a letter in hU 1
p o * bet which contained this .: —1 ehould sooner hear of yonr death than jfonr cowardice . ' His sister : also , wrote as follows :- I wonM rather lay your lifeless body in the grave than hear that yon were guilty of being either a spy or a coward . ' How , this showed that his family were ' up to the mart' ( Tremendous cheering . ) His consU . tuency , also , left it with him whether he should remain i town or not . He bad never heard anything leu ( torn any de egate , bnt that he was prepared to sacrifice all in their causa , Ma wnen the real day of trial arrived , they would all be found to act worthy ot Englishmen , Irishmen , and Scotchmen , ( Great cheering , )
Now that was the speech and I next come to the resolution . : ¦ lst- « Mr'West stated that he doubted whether they would ett the people to petition again ; but he begged to more , after what had taken place in the House of Commons on Thursday night , that Mr O'Connor would not oe justified w bringing forward a motion on the subject of the Charter . . - 'Mr Graham moved , as an amendment , — « That the Charter be brought forward that aight The motion and amendment having been respectively seconded , a vote was taken , when the amendment was negatived Vy a majority of thirty . fire to four , and the originalmotion carried . ' Now that resolution is in the Star of the 15 th of April , page 8 , coli 3 . and in the same page , col . 4 , will be found the following : —
On , the motion of Ifr Adams . A VOTE O ? THANKS WAS GIVEN TO MB . 7 E&RGTJS O'COHHOR FOR HIS HOBLE ASD DIGH 1 PJED COSDTJCT IN THE HOUSE OF COMMONS H 3 T N 16 HT , AND THAT CONVENTION DECLARED IT * WARMEST SYMPATHY WITH HIM IN THE TREATMENT HE HAS RECEIVED . 'The motioa waB carried unanimously , and briefly acknowledged by ' thehon . gentleman , who retired asaid ¦
loodcheers ? Now , here was my justification—nay , MY COMMAND—not to bring my motion forward under the circumstances , and here was Mr Adams ' s condemnation of ray out-door COWARDICE , and my indoor BLAJtNEY , after four days' and nights' reflection , as the meeting was on Monday , the 10 th , and his motion was brought forward on Friday , the 14 tb . I would ask if there could possible exist a stronger conviction against my present accusers ?
12 th . With regard to my laudation of Sir George Grey , I stated then , as I state now , that men will be guilty of acts as a body , that the basest among them would blush to acknowledge as an individual , and I was showing the vices of the system which thus induced individuals of kindly feelings-to lend themselves to acts of injustice ; but surely this was no great crime ? But , perhaps my Scotch censors hold it to be a crime to say good of any man . 13 th . Wth regard to my fling at the Irish Confederates in the person of C . G . Duffy of the Nation , after circumstances are not to constitute a test for judging previous acts . In the letter of Mr
Duffyupon which I commented—the most rabid and ungenerous attack was made upon the English Chartists , and the > lrish people themselves were invited to rely upon the shopkeepers and the landlords rather than upon their own exertions ; and would I , who have suffered so much in the defence of Chartism , have been justified in allowing this apple of discord to have been thrown between the English Chartists and Irish Confederates , to secure whose amalgamation has cost me years of pain , trouble , and expense . But , do my accusers forget that the Irish Confederates of that day were as much opposed to the policy of the' Hation' as I was ? and would these Scotch
censors make Mr Duffy ' s martyrdom the basis of their present onslaught upon me ? Mitchel was suspected and denounced until victimised , and then he was enlsgised , and so it is with every man ;• ' but ranch as I sympathised with Mr Duffy , the English Chartists must bear in mind that he vowed never to 'BRIDGE THE GULF' between them and the Irish people , and that as a lepresentative of Chartism it was my duty to resent the insult . I did so , and will again , if circumstances warrant . 14 th . I have so , objection to risk my ' corpse , ' as the Scotch philosophers term it , because it would be worth but little except for dissection ; bnt I have a great objection to place my life in the keeping of such ' men as Adams , Cochrane , and Co *
15 th . The scribes state that no insult was offered to Mr O'Connor , and yet we find the following pithy morsel in the voluminous indictment preferred agaiRsthitn . Here it is . ' The enthusiasm of the people abated—their brightest hopes of success were all blasted by Mr O'Connor's letters . They hesitated about sending their delegates to the Assembly . The first of May came—toe Asstmbly met ; and behold the result . Out of 180 delegates elected , only twenty-seven appealed , at the commencement . Gtainally they came dropping in , till the beginning of
the second week ; but never did tbe number reach anything like that originally ntended . The Assembly sa . tr , fram . the beginning , it had . not the unaaSsuros support of the country . The sincere portion of the members , find . iug themselves so awkwardly situated , and knowing the eatue . BOLDLY and opbhlt xxpusseu their minds upon the ubject Thi > called forth the condemnation of the O'Connor party , who . in consistency , ought not to have been there at all , and hence the speedy dissolution of the Assembly , and the complete prostration of the people ' s cau'e-wtt O'Connor is tie popular leader . '
Now 1 should be glad to know what the terms ' boldly and openly expressed their minds npon . the subject , which called forth the condemnation of the O'Connor party , and blowing the cause' refers to , it not to abuse of Feargus O'Connor ? But then see the self-condemnation of the Assembly , and see the exemplification of the democratic principle , as illustrated nth those gentlemen with their LIVES IN THEIR HANDS , ready to be sacrificed in the glorious cause of liberty , but panting more warmly for the ten thousand pounds , but now increased to the fever pulsation , in the vain , hope of destroying him who prevented the plunder of the people , and the sacrifice of their cause . The democrats admit that the Assembly . from the beginning , hadnot the unanimous support of the country ; and although the veritable Chartists belonging to the O'Connor party constituted a large majority of the Assembly , we are
told that' IN CONSISTENCY THEY OUGHT NOT TO BE THERE AT ALL . ' Now , is not this extremely democratic , or does it not smack of the democratic policy laid down in the Birmingham Sturge Conference , in which Messrs Adams and Cochraae were delegates , when the Chairman declared that the majority was in favour of preserving the name of the Charter , hut the good sense was with the small minority , the chairman , walking out , and abandoning his own Conference ? Now is not this a bright illustration of the Scotch philosopher ' s notion of Democracy and Universal Suffrage ? Sat still further to prove that these creatures of Faddy Brewster are strongly impregnated with the Birmingham policy and definition of majority , they have the unblushing insolence to propose that the name of our movement should be changed from the
CHARTIST ASSOCIATION to the DEMOCRATIC CONFEDERATION OF GREAT BRITAIN . . 16 th . Mr O'Connor did promise in the Star' of the 15 th of April to propound a plan , and every week from that period to the close of the sittings of the National Assembly , Mr O'Connor waj propounding his plan ; not a new plan , but the plan which he recommended in the ' Star' of 1848 , namely—a nnion with the small shopkeepers , . trades , and Irishmen . The Irish had but recently'joined us ; and had it not been for the villainy of the Ten Thousand Pounders , ' with their hearts in their hands , ' before one month after the 10 th of April , all those parties would have joined us ; and from the Scotch delegates in that Assembly I trace the ternporwy suppression of Chartism .
17 . h . Mr O'Connor did pledge himself that if that Gagging Bill passed , he would declare himself a Republican ; and he thinks that was a pretty broad announcement in such a House . And when taunted by Sir Robert Peel with stating 'that he did not not care whether the Pope , the Devil , or the Pretender was on the throne—or what they called the monarch—if the people bad the power of electing him '—npon that occasion Mr . O'Connor did not qualify , bnt repeated the assertions . And now , without any reference to the enraged state of the House during the last session , Mr O'Connor submits his speeches as published in Hansard , as specimens of the boldest speeches erer delivered in tbe House of Commons . 18 th . I did aay , that I would impeach the ministers , bnt I trust that I Lave more mom than to do
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so , - wh ? n allTouTd " be their supfi 6 rters : ~ anaS- ~ aiT ; nowmme , ; ¦ .., ¦ - . „ .. ,,,-. . « , ? w .- . . v , J 19 i £ did promise to bring on the mptionVfor . a- £ arle r . bM'the new .-Executive ; Tappointed by P « 8 S ° pher 8 j gave it : as their ^ opinion , ' thatuit would be injudicious , and surely the philosophers wril not now dispute ; the wisdom of their ov ? n officers . ' - : ~ ¦"'; . ' ¦ 20 tb . I d ! 4 tell the Convention , ihat ; i would be prepared to . assist the National , Assembl y ^ anticipating that that Assembl y would be a legal- Assembly , and would fairl y represent the Chartist princi ples . ; but I did not anticipate the gathering of such a body , to misrepresent those principles , and render them odious . " ¦ ¦ ••¦ » ,.
21 st . The inind of England , might have been looking to me for ttie promised fruits of their long acd incessant labour ; but , for fourteen long years , upto that very period , the mind of Ireland had been marahalled against my principles , and embittered against my person . 22 nd . I adopt every word of the following passage , as my own . MEASURE HIM BY HIS OWN STANDARDEXERCISE YOUR OWN JUDGMEKtS . BE MM . READ , READ , READ ; THINK , THINK . THIHK TRY HI M HOT BY ONE 8 OLITARY . ACT , BUT BY HIS EVERY ACT . AHD THEN DECIDE AS TO WHETHER HE BE ENTITLED TO A CONTINUATION OF YOUR CONFIDENCE ' v
Now those are the words in the indictment , and upon them I join issue with ray accusers ? I say , try me upon my every act , not durinf the last boisterous season—not Bince Tjoined' the English Chartists—not since I estab'ished ' the 'Northern Star , '—not since I first came into Parliament in 1832 , but since I first joined the Irish people in 1822 , w . hen deserted by their every leader ; when every door , of every relative ' s house was shut against ine , and when I was compelled to fly . my country for thirteen months . " Yes ; try me through my long and continuous struggles with Daniel O'Connell
and his Irish lickspitlles-iwith the ' . base , bloody . and brutal Whigs ! and iheir bfficiaU- rwith the press and its power—with the middle classes and their deeprooted hatred—with the jury class ,., and ^ their omnipotence , and , though last , not least , with the vermin of Labour , and I assert , without fear of contradiction , that no public man who ever lived in any age , in any country , can boast of the same political consistency for over a quarter & { acenluTv , when promises , pledges , and anticipations held out to the poor , justify them in tolerating their betrayal by their pledged friends . .
Henry Hunt was prematurely hurried to the cold grave by popular ingratitude , created by folly and madness . He was murdered , and rests in his grave with the consolation of his memory being honoured ; and yet the ordeal through which he passed , was but child ' s play , compared with what I have gone through . John Knight , of Oldham , Henry Hunt ' s friend , told me with his last words , ' that the Luudoners would destroy me if Istopped the supplies / and , no matter what my opposition to the philosophers might have been , if I aided them in the £ 10 , 000 grab , I might have denounced the principles of Chartism as long as I pleased . ¦
23 rd . Ididsell to the secretary . of the Glasgow Association 1500 cards , upon my tour with Mr Duncombe , the secretary telling me that that number had applied for cards . and when my toady repeated the lie , '—Oh ! how the Lord doth deliver my enemies into ray hands—James Adams , of . Glasgow , stood in front of the platform in the City Hall , and spoke to the sentiment , 'Feargus O'Connor , Esq .. ' when he stated that he could not 'FIND LAN GIJAGE SUFFICIENTLY STRONG to express his admiration of that gentleman . ' Now , vlhat will the honourable delegate say of his abuse of the honourable gentleman ? ... •
24 th . In 1846 , Mr O'Connor himself advanced a great portion of the funds to keep the movement alive , and surely , when $ he seantiness of tbe receipts at that period is referred to by the ' philosophers , instead of being urged as a charge against me , it should be urged as a charge against the , people . But what do the philosophers say ? Why , that FHILE HE KNOWS , AND HE 18 AWARS THAT GOVERNMENT KSOWS , THAT WHEN THE STRUG 6 LE COMBS , HE CANNOT MARSHAL THE FORCES HE BOASTS HE CAN COMMAND '
Well , surely , if ever there was a justification for not going to battle with inferior forces , and their inferiority known to the enemy , here it is furnished by the philosophers ; but let it be understood , that if that weakness does exist in the popular ranks , it has been caused by such vermin as those to whose charges I am replying . 25 th ; Mr O ' Connor did much prefer the Free Trade policy of Peel to that of Russell , and Mr O'Connor , when famine stared—not millions of bis own countrymen—but the whole population in the face , and when he was aware that if Free Trade did not pass , the agitators of that country would have saddled English Chartism with all the
consequences of the famine—would have told them , that , bnt for the Chartists , the streets would have been paved with penny loaves , and the houses thatched with pancakes ; and Mr O'Connor having discovered for many years , that Irish hostility to English Chartism constituted the main strength of the Whig government , he did call a Conference at his own expense , and what other man in Europe would do it—that Conference consisted of the most consistent opponents to Free Trade ; that Conference saw the justice and the policy of the proposition ; that ' Conference submitted its proposition to , a meeting of over 5 , 000 working men in the HaU of Science , at Manchester , and it was ¦ uaanimo \ islv
received amid the most unbounded applause . < Was this an act of despotism ? First , to have consulted the representatives of Labeur , and then to hate submitted their deliberations to Labour itself . And what Mr O'Connor now says is , that , under . the present system , Sir Robert Peel is the only living statesman who can suggest those changes which Free Trade imperatively demands , and which the dominant parly will accept ; Peel ' s Free Trade means a progressive advance towards reciprocity ; Russell ' s Free Trade means office ; . while Mr O'Connor further contends , and ever has contended , th at the
only possible means of making Free Trade nationally beneficial , is by the enactment of the PEOPLE'S CHARTER . But Mr O'Connor does not belong to that class of politicians , who under a bad system which creates famine , starvation , and death , considers himself debarred from selecting a choice of evils . And Mr O'Connor ever has and ever will , attribute the present'distress of the country to Lord John Russell ' s Free Trade policy , which might have been much mitigated by the policy of Sir Robert Peel , but never can be wholly eradicated , until the creator of wealth is represented in the House of Commons . ¦
26 th . I now come to the last charge , that of mis . stating the number of signatures attached to the National Petition . . ; . 1 st . The Convention itself appointed a . Petition Committee , and upon that committee was Mr ADAMS himself . They appointed London men to count the signatures to that petition . On Wednesday I went to the Land Office and asked Mr M'Grath how the petition sheets irere coming in ? He took me down stairs to the eellar , in company with . Mr Nicholson , who w& 9 appointed to take the numbers . Mr M'Grath showed them to me , and told ine he did riot think there was over a million and a half . I admit that I did stamp my foot , and
that I said in a rage , 'Are these tbe men who want tbe Charter ? ' Oh , Sir , ' said Mr M'Gratb , 'this is nothing , the Convention has reaeived communications from all parts of the country , mentioning large petitions that have not arrived yet ; they have not come yet from any of the' large towns . I replied , ' I stated to'the country that this time there will be five million signatures , and if I cannot state in the House that there are that number , you must get some one else to present it for 1 will not , ' and I left the office . On Saturday , the 8 th , I went to Snig ' s find , ' and between Wednesday and Saturday . I had not a word of conversation relative to the petition . On Sunday I returned to my hotel ; there were present there Mr Cullingham , Mr M'Grath , Mr Clark , Mr Doyle , MrDixon , Mr Harney , and a highly respectable gentleman , well known to and respected
by the working classes . When the Executive entered i said , ' Well , M'Grath , how goes on the Petition . ' ' Well , Sir , ' he replied , I think your expectation will be more than realised , as they are Hear the in millions now , and tbe men will be engaged all light in counting and rolling the sheets . ' I said , ' Thank God for that . Shall I have such a list as I can read to the house , if the signatures from any locality are questioned ? ' Mr M'Grath replied , Yes , 'Sir , Mr Nicholson has been appsinted to draw np a list from each place . ' On Monday morning I went to the Convention—it was stated to the Convention , not by me , but by one of the Committee , that the signatures amounted to much more than five millions , bnt that as they were still pouring in the men were still rolling it , and the list was not completed . Cuffey , who is now summoned as one of my accusers , waB present in the Convention $ we got into the cars
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arove ^ - 'tK-ESna-TOffi theiCommUtee . brought me ; out the lis $ ,,. amounting to 5 , 70 !) , 00 . 0 , and placed the Petition in ^ the , caiv ^ l I stated the-numbera as Represented to me ; arid when impugned- b y the Government ; -on the ; faith of thirteen law clerkspwho I * subsequently showed should have counted at the rate of 150 a miriute , besides discovering all the false signatures . ' . and obscenities , and . without eating Or'ftinking-i made ' the . following speech itf . ' the ,. House ' of Corainons , which wili . be found in page li column 3 , of the 'Star' ef the 15 th of April .:- ; ^ . ; ,
' Ob the motion that the report do Ue upon the table Mr F . O'Connor said , thatit ( would be quite Impossible . for any thirteen clerkii to count , i from the time tUe petition was printed , even 1 , 900 , 0 ( 10 signatures , nnd he * should ; therefore , mo ? e for the appointment of % committee to inquire into tho subject . THere was an old saying , « that thosa who hid knew where to find * and he believed that if such abuses did exist , it no doubt wastheactof jomo of the ' government spies . ( ' Oh , oh . ' ) He fully b £ Keyed that the number of signatures he had , represented tne pjtttwn to . contain was correct ,,. He woud apply taf K ? * ° i * * ll Utl ? - - " " P * Hto » wai cohtainea in four or five large bundles , and It took himself , assisted r 2 " i ° n' Hedid not hellete he should hsVe any rtfrf WSS& V H tion u P ° the same . nbS ° rTh » il It W ° - d ? uble or treble that number . ' . ; L ho 3 fl 09 ' ! ™» misreportod it ihetdd ' harebeen t ™ «
. , , , 5 , 000 , 000 . ] , ; --. . » , » ., » w » ^ Now , then , I ask any sane , man whethei , witii a thorough knowled ge of the omni potence of a Select Committeei in such cases , whether . I / would , be hkely to move for the . appointment of such a tribunal , if I did not conscientiously believe that I haa not been deceived by ., -the PETITION COMMITTEE I What would have been my chance of escape if a petition , which ' -1
represented to contain five million seven hundred thousand signatures , was found to ' contain only onethird of that number ? With respect to the petition presented by Mr Duncombe , it did : coutain vhe number stated—namely , over 3 , 300 . 000 . Mr Phil p , onej of the' Executive , was superintendent of that petition , and with him rests the responsibility 5 while / with regard to not being counted , every man wno understands the forms of the H 6 ' use , is awar that every petition . MUST BE COUNTED : and Mr
Puncombe was . not held responsible then if there was any . inaccuracy * because terror then was not so necessary to keep the Whi gs in power , and because HIS destruction then , though a . much abler man , vras not considered as necessary as my destruction in ¦ iK *' perilous days of A pril 5 and I now unhesitatingly declare that the last petition was in . finitely larger , and infinitel y heavier , than the petition presented j > y Mr Diihcombei . There is another fact , of which the philosophers are not aware—namely , that , independently of the
large muster , roll , during the previous week , 1 had presented 175 other petitions for the Charter , some of them—if I remember right—signed by 12 . Q 00 , some by 6 , 000 , some by 4 , 000 , and some by smaller numbers . - As regards Cuffey , what I stated in the House was not that he was a 'Tom-fool ; but when ColoneLSibthorp ( I think ) called him a f . Tomfool , ' and wished to make me responsible for his every word , I defended Cuffey , and asked if I was to beheld accountable for what every ' Tom-fool ' said ? ¦ "!¦¦ " . : : ¦ , .
Having thus answered this portion of the charge , let- me now call the reader ' s attention' to the nicet y with which our professing friends scrutinise the signatures to a Chartist petition , a 5 compared with the dashing and unscrupulous , manner in which theirs enemies perform the same work . ¦ I know parties' who signed the petition against Catholic Emancipation every time they passed the place where it lay ; while * it is an indisputable fact ; that for Catholic Emancipation , and against Catholic Emancipation , for Reform , and against Reform , for Free Trade , and against Free Trade , for the admission of the Jews to Parliament , and against th « ir admission , signatures have been
manufactured , as Mr Newdegate stated , at so much per hundred . But to furnish the reader with the strongest proof of this process being well understood by the House , when the strength of party is 8 ufficienlty powerful to meet the sneer of their opponents , upon the charge of fabricaion , la « t session 1 presented a petition numerously signed from the Colliery districts , in Lancashire , with reference to the Colliery explosion : Sir George Grey subseuently took it off the-table , and not with anger or gravity , but as if it was a common practice , shewed me that nearly every name was written in the same hand . But , as with physical force , so with petitions ; I must bear the weight of both ; I must
be denounced as the physical force Chartist b y the Press and the enemy , and as a moral force coward by the professing , friend j I must be answerable for the genuineness of every signature to a petitioH , while others pay for ; and boast of , their manufacture ; and when I sew hundreds standing at the Land Office , while . few were signing the peiition , I asked Mr Clark , who was . with ine , why they did not sign . it ? aud he replied that many of them could - not write—and I retorted * You are pretty fellows to get up a petition . ' You should take a lesson in petition manufacturing from the enemy ; and when you find one who cannot write , let another sign his name , and let him ' put his mark .
But let me now see if I can establish some greater number of signatures than 1 , 900 , 000 , by a sectional analysis of the country . On Wednesday morning , the 5 th of April , the second day of the meeting of the Convention , as reported in page 1 , col . 5 , of the ' Star' of the 8 th of April—1 Mr Adaiis said , from Glasgow , which was a district co ' mpriiiing an immense population , he had brought un one hundred thousand signatures to the petition , and another thirty thousand had since been forwarded . The middle classesh& 4 begun to fraternise ; in fact , the onls parties who refused their aid and subscriptions wer ' those who fatten on 'he vice and dissi pation of the people —the publicans , ' - MrWyld , the delegate from Mottram , said he had brought up 70 , 800 signatures . '
Now , if the Scotch philosophers will add 70 , 000 to 130 , 000 , they will find that-it makes 200 , 000 , or more than one-tenth of the reported signatures , coming from Glasgow and Mottram alone , while Mr Lightowler reported 70 000 from his dfctrict ; and Mr-Ernest Jones gpoke as foliows : — - ' Mr Ernest Joneshellered that it would be found that the number of signatures really affixed to the petition was underrated rather than overrated . ( Hear , hear . ) There were 200 , 000 signatures now lying at the office he had been advised of 47 , ' 00 which were sent from Halifax en Thursday la « t , which had never come to hand . ' 'Mr Mirsden stated , th . it he had brought 85 , 01 ) 0 sienatnres with him . ' :: - ¦ . ¦¦ ,-. ¦< . -
Thus we have 392 , 000 signatures , WITH MORE TO FOLLOW , reported by five delegates , more than one-fifth reported , to be affixed to the petition , and not embracing the large manufacturing towns of Manchester , Birmingham , Leeds , Huddersfield , Liverpool , Preston , Bolton , Oldham , and district , Edinburgh , Newcastle-upon-Tyne , Carlisle , Bristol , Bath , and the thousand and one tributary streams . But seeMr Adams ' s wrath at the imputation east upon the petition before hia mind was perverted by the hope of the £ 10 , 000 : — . . ¦ .: ' . <• - ' ' Mr Adams moved , as an amendment , « That the Con . Tention would undertake to procure a greater number of genuine signatures to tbe petition than it was represented to have bad , if the Government were prepared to consider that as an argument in favour of iti consideration . '
Now then , as is ., my . custom , I , am going to carry the fice 1 into the enemies' camp . Of course every reflection cast upon the ; number of signatures , since the failure of the National Assembly , was known to Cuffey and others ; previous ( o its presentation , but certainly to Mr James Adams > who was A MEMBER OF THE PETITION COMMITTEE , and therefore , if the numbers were falsified , and if in consequence thereof I received insult ' from the House of Commons , and the Chartist cause received damage , I charge the insult , the damage and the falsehood upon James Adams , whose ^ business it was-to have reported truly the number of signatures , and thereby have saved himself from the charge of palpable fraud committed upon Feargus O'Connor and the
Chartists ; He cannot get over this , even if I was guilty , because he is parlkeps criminis , and stands in the position of Powell and Davis , with this difference ; that in the transaction he is guilty and I am wholly innocent . It is to be understood , howevei , that I merel y charge this information upon his own evidence ,, as at thisimoraent I declare , so help me God . I believe there were over five million signatures to the Petition . However , I leave the question with the Scotch jury , and , truth to gay , they are much better than English juries ; and when the controversy is between me arid the biggest WttCkgnwd that ever wore a head , he ' d be sure to get a verdict , but then there ' s an appeal to a larger tribunal , and that is the WHOLE PEOPLE . '
So much for Mr Adama ' e views before the anticipation of the £ 10 , 000 ; and now for his previous physical force views when he had * his heart in his hand . ' The reader will find the following in page 5 , col . 5 , of the' Star' of the 8 th of April :-• Mr Adams did not Bee tbe slightest neocflsity for any bravado . Tney were pursuing a peaceful , legal , and constltulional course . He thought that they were wrong in anticipating an onslaught . Such discussion was calculated to provoke feelings of hostility . What right had tlia Government to make an onslaught ? The question had yet to be decided in a court of law , whether we bad or bad not the right . He therefore moved , as an amendment , < That this Convention has no right to anticipate an on . glaught , or tiw arrest of tbe members , on Monday neiV
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"• -N 0 W rthen > what ^ ill-the . readet-8 ay ; to thSiSa ! oui pfjthe - datiiotiwith . 'HIS ^ lEART . IN HIS HANI )/ propdsing to appealifrom the- field of . battle to- the , arena of law , andwho now abuses meand the ExecuV ti'l ^ P ' P waging war with the elements on the . lOlh of April ? Thispatriot , with ' his heart in his hand , verymchreraind ' s me of poor Judy Flannigari , [ w W * startled by the sudden ' appearance of tei ° Ji ' " SKM- ' ° B 1 WISHA , DARBY , MY OFWShS ' HEART S IN THE HEEL mvNow , rthirik I havebe » n as good as my word in answering every charge seriatim ; and I think the reader Will see that I have more to dread from the
rascality of professing Chartists than from the snares of Powell , Davis , arid thek-roasters ; and although I have gone to ' great length , and occupied much space , if the reader thinks it is thrown' away , I am not to blame . Let thoae whom the philosophers assured that there was not an abusive or offensive Word in their statement , judge for themselves ; and letI ' lach ask himself , whether there is another proprietor of a newspaper in the world ( hat would publish such rabiu ) hon 8 ense--Bucb insulting stuff ? The position cf the three tailors of Tooley Street was sublimity itself compared to that of Paddy Brewster ' s three knobstick Chartists , urged to madness by the cherished venom of their master , whom I
have thrashed twice at Paisley—in his own townonce iu Dunfermline , once in Aberdeen , and once in Glasgow .: and still further , these knobsticks were drivento frenzy by thedisappointraent of Vh « lion ' s Bhare of the LIBERTY FUND . Are these fellows , who declare they did not abuse me in the Convention , aware that the whole of their original correspondence has been placed in ray hands ? Is their irariiaculate coadjutor from Falkirk aware that I am ' alBO in possession of his , original . correspondence , and of the original correspondence , ' during the sitting of the National Assembly , of the Scotch delegates-and their , constituents , and that I . have rievbr published a word of these atrocious letters , though I have been requested to do so ? But I have withheld them in the hope tb at the * philosophers ' would see the error , of their , ways . -
I shall now conclude with an anecdote strictly illustrative of the position of ' the patriot who carrie ' to London with ' his heart in his hand , ' to fight the battle of the Charter . In the old days of the Spanish wars an enthusiastic volunteer ordered his regimentals , that he mi ght die grand ; but , though panting for liberty , he had a strong affection for his heart , and he told the tailor to put a ¦ strong tin-plate in his coat . The regimentals' came home late at ni ght ; the war-whoop was
sounded early in the morning—the enthusiastic soldier was' doomed to a place in the front rank—the order to charge ' wa 8 given , when his regiment was routed ; and' ^ heri , scampering over a ditch , a grenadier gave him a poke in ' the posteriors with his . bayonet , which assisted him in the bound . The gallant soldier felt for the wound , and discovered that Mr Snip had put the plate of tin iu the backside of his breeches , instead of inside his coat , and he exclaimed , — 'By Jove ! Snip , knewbetter where my heart lay than I did myself . ' Fea bgus O'Connor .
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We have read that part of Mr O'Connor ' s answer to the charges of the GUsgow delegates , and the statements therein made , in which our . names are mentioned , and they are critically and literally true . , ' ' Phiup M'Grath . , ; . William Dixon . Thomas . Clark . I was appointed by the Petition Committee of the National Convention , to take the number of signatures coming from each town and district , and the manner in which I performed the duty was thus s—the delegates who brought petitions with them reported the numbers to me , and I Superintended the counting of those which came by post without numbers affixed , and the duty of counting
those petitions was assigned by the Petition Com . mittee to London men . After the numbers were impugned in the -House of Commons , Mr Adams , who was the most active of the Petition Committee , and " ! who called upon me every day at dinner hour to ascertain the numbers , accompanied by me waited upon the several delegates auain , to ascertain the number of signatures brought by each ; and upon comparing the list , as furnished by me to Mr O'Ciinnur on the day of the Kennington Comm ; n meeting , with the statements subsequently made by the ; delsgates , there , was little , if any , difference between the numbers stated b y Mr O'Connor in the ; House of Commons , and that subsequently ascertained from the delegates themselves .
; I can solemnly declare , that neither Mr O'Connor , nor anypersan authorised b y him , nor any persom whatsoever , directly or indirectl y , attempted to influence me as to the statement ef the number of signatures to the National Petition , and of the truth of the above statement I am prepared , if necessary , to take my oath . > W . H . Nicholson .
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Dbath of the Right Hon . Charlks Buixer , — Mr Charles Buller , member for Liakeard and Pr » sident of the Poor Law Board , died at an early hour on Wednesday moraing . About a fortnight ago Mr Buller underwent an operation for one of the most painful , disorders to which man ia liable . Although the operation was Bucc&sfully performed , great dc bility succeeded , the health of the patient not having been , previously very . robust . On Monday , it seems , a low fever supervened , and under it the right hon . gentleman Bunk about half-past sixo ' olookon Wednesday morning ! despite the unremitting attention and skill ofhis medical attendants . Tfaedeoeased has passed . ' away at the comparative prematu e ase of forty-two .
A Hbroinb . —Albxandria , Not . 23 . —A vessel bound for Aden with coal , having lost her master by death when about twelve days ' sail from her destination , the crew eonspired to take possession aad dispose of her on the coast ; of Arabia However , the captain ' s daughter , Miss Arnold , ' a young voman of the age of twenty , was on board , and she having reoeived tome intimation of the piratical intentions of the men , armed herself with a p « ir of pistols ; secured all the firearms , and getting the mate and another man to join her , bravely forced tho mutineers to work the ship to Aden , where they are now in confinement .
Sbizubb op an Illicit Dktillbrt .. —On WednendayMrE . Thomas and Mr J . Vanstone , ExoiBO officers , went to a house in Wa ' ter-lanei Hackney , and having gamed admittance at the front door , they proceeded to make an examination of the premises and in the back room of the ground floor found a large copper still , set in brickwork , which had been recently worked off , with a small quantity of illicitly , made spirits , The reBt of the working . had been removed by the men belonging to the place . There wera . about 100 gallons of molaesea wash prepared for distillation , a numberfof tubs , pipeBandthe
, general stock-in-trade of a contraband distillerr . Two females were found in the house , who gave the capi ' fs of Phoa ' w West , and Ann Brown , the latter of whom was recognised aa an old offender , havinjr b'en detect » d in a similar . transaction in 1847 , when she acfiVred three months' imprisonment ; both womeawero pjiven into . piisfcody . While the Exoiss offioers were in the house preparing to despatoh their teizurc to the Excise wavehouses , a gentle tap was given at the door , which was opened , and a man , bearing a bag of molasKB entered , who was also giTenincharce . ... " ..... .
DoBHAH—DaiTH feom HTDBopnoEH . —On We * nes . day week , Mr Qjorge Cummingg , Innkeeper and grocer , residing at Shorburn'Hlll , died in tbe greatest agon ; from the « ff * ota of kydrophobio . Abiut nine weeks ago the aeooaied had what U called a ' wife ' s feast * at Ms home , and , during tbe course of the evening , two dogs whloh were In the house began to fight under a table , and , on the deceased attempting to separate them , oneof the dogs fljw at him , and < bi ? hlm sHghtfy upon tBenose , Not muoh ootloewasat first taken of the matter , although some time after it took place deoeased complained of shootlHg pains from the wound up te his head . Oa Monday evening , however , unmletakeable symptoms of tbe dreadful malady exhibited themselves , and they Inoreaaed In vlolenoa np to Wednesday night , when , as staled above , Mr Camming * expired . The dog , effected Its eiospe from toehoase , sndbas not tiaco been seen ,
Stbaboe Cieccm T 4 KCB . —Aboynamsd Elwln Hayball , of Chard pariah , ono day last , week fell into a mill pond and was lapposed to be drowned ; he wsp , howerer , taken out of the wa ^ : r and the body carried home , Everybody believed the child dead except his mother , whose » fflio Ion waB very great . She took htm . In her arms arid held htm before the fire . After nearly hal ( an hour the child showed symptoms of returning oenjoIousnMB , upon trhlob soiao ohangeintbe pisltion of tbekoey took place , when It was dleoovered ( hat tbe child ' s foot bad been in the fire , and was dreadfully burnt , . A surgeon having been called in did whatwai
otcesBsry , and the child was getting on very well . About three d » ya after tho mother placed him before tie fire for a moment while she went into the garden j and on her retura was horror-struck to find her child burnt nlmoBt to a cinder . It is a singular coincidence ) that a girl , the cousin of the aboveaamed Edwin Hayball , a short time tlooe fell inte the fire , and one of her breaBtB was almott entirely contained in her agony she ran to the mill pond to allay the pain by bathing -the breast with cold water , when the fell in and was drowned . An Inquest has been held on Edwin Hftjball , and a verdlot of' Accidental dtath' returned .
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—————¦¦" "r ^ - ^ rat ^ t ^; E ^ pU ^^ Ai ^ TTg ^| f ; On SjturdayrlasfrjflSpryrRaBkon-. iind- , Robert rlanjiitou ^ er ^ plsie ^ Ohetit ' M the' fligh'Cbwb of Justiciary , ia Edia ^ ufgnTto ~ ae »^*> Judgment of their lordships in fall bej « hVophS Objections whioh had been raised by their / cfottnwHo' ^ o sufficiency of the verdict wMon ' the'jury'abj 6 at ' tfoHilfgh ^ a ^ o ; pronounced in their case ; finding itiem - ' goiftylof ^ setb > tipn . in so far that they iiaed finBaajte' * oaloulatcd to excite popular diBaffectioriand-reoi ' stanceto lawful authority . ; ^ ¦ . vr . -:- ;^ - ; ^ * *¦ :: ><¦ k \\ the Lo : da of Justiciary were ' pres ' ariV except the Lord JosiiceGeneral . ' ' -- ¦ " «^ - . ; ' - Ths Lord Jusiioe Glebe hayins sUiteiJ 'the termii of the jury ' s verdjot , and the explanation with wbioH itw . « accompanied , that they hod 'burnoself left oat _
the word 'intended , ' in charaqtefiMB ' g the languart - uwd by the ptisonws , at gie ' at length * gate it as hM opinion , that to hold , as oourisel had done ; that ' snob : a Verdict was equivalent to one of not' guilty , yiiA a position opposed to sound reason and common sensei He Bhowed , from avast number of caiw . that it was not essential in an indictrrierit ; for sedition to wefc foxtU the averment that tho words were 'ihteadeo ? I to produce snoh a result an populap disaffection and I resistance to lawful authority , and he contended , that it it was not necessary for the public pro-Ifiecutor n so to 'frame ' the indietm ' snt , it waa nofc necessary for the jury to find Buch an " ' ^^^ tioa . ' Ia a ease of theft ,- for inBtarioe' ; H ' was
not necessary for the jury to use the words ia the minor proposition of the indiotment ; that 'ha wickedly and theftuously took the articles " aways The worda ' gnilty of theft' ware quite raffisient to csUblieh the obaraoter of the act : and hence , on'the . same winoiiile , the yerdiot ' guilty of sedition was sufficient of itself to characterise' the crime of sedition . The crime of sedition coosista in wilfully , unlawfully , and to the public danger , using language aloulated to produce general disafiectisn , disloyalty , and reBistanoe to lawful authority .- Now , in thil
ot \ ma be awteuendedthat the law did not look foj or rtquiw the general dole , or legal malicious intention or pnrpese with reference' to the 'prwise intent which tbe words ware calculated to produce . ¦ If such purpose was also proved , the case would be one of a more aggravated kirid ' of seditionl . If this view of the law of the ewe wasoorteot , and he held that it was . then he maintsined that the objections to the verdwt mast fail . He stated in ooridnsiori , that it was saOsfactory tohim that thejnry had left out the ? dT h - ! tMt the £ aM in a IesB 4
Lords Macktsnzib , ' Mokcbibjf , MEDwr . f , and Wood , Bucwssiwl , ddiwwd their opiniom , whu , h . ! in the team coincided with the riews of the H Justice LJera . ¦ nfS ° M- ? ^ T ! . ? lo l igspeeoh ' « fevoitf of holding the objection relevant , and the verdiot at tantamount to a v 8 rdic » of acquittal . He . held that there could be no sedition unless there was torn director indirect . guiltiness of infentkn ; that e ^ intention was indiBpensable to the commisMon of tlS fh !?« iiS » Q * ? P ll ! Bd . ? , a 11 the tototmenfcS SiJ i 7 « l ate tn ? ° [ the lMt centary . ^ nd he «« W not find one in which the wickedness of mind oitbe accused was not charged , dthonPS tr Tt ^ hT l alW 878 » d KfsknS way . The libel before them contained not onl 7 » general charge of wickedness , but a special chX of what that wickedness oonsistedin . > riiat was th « ease whioh the prisoners werewarned to- meet . ThS oi
aaeweworasavernngthiashowed that the dm . weutor must have understood that it wasYecesJS for him to embrace them in the indiotment "SdS tain \ ytheint . ntion . wasnotleftoritin tb ^ coffof the trial . But the jury hayinj left out the intentioa in their Yerdurt , the Bubfltsnce of the armS founded on his by their lordships wm , that MtTwai l ^ tt ^ STf- , ^ th 5 » * ¦ " -aSSSS £ , t jf £ ° fi , of iat ? ntioa wa 8 «« ential t ? S offence , it was the province of the jnry to find ft proved ; and K . they had not done so , ft held that itsxpreas what it did not do , and least of all when ESH ^' ' ' ^ e priBoners . and fo ? iS wP « . SlP ?? ? - vn * ' : ! « eonolusion , hU lordsbxp stated , that when the o ' ronmstance essential forthepns . 6 r ' s . convicti 6 n was not found h ?!
ent led to nave the verdict considered as one of m . (| Ultt&J « There being thus only , oae judge in faTourofaoi . - taming theobieotions raised by the prisoners' eouS inarest rijudgment , the objectionB were 1 twSff aadthe court proceeUo pass aentence . repeuM » LordMouoEiHFPgaid that he was happy to think hat , haTing now sat on thU criminal bench for S teen years , he had not been called npondSsS that time to take any part in a trial for aed&'Su now . A case had however now occurred-and « was impossible net to see that in theo ? cnffi 8 tanceS under which this indiotment was laid there wm « 5 absolute necessity at law requiring thapnbnoauthS ntiea to bung . the matter under the consideratioa J the court . The indictment contained tery Sous charges . The charge of oongpirwy in the Si . libeled waa one of a very > rf «« oharaote , \ ll Sf j
natcnarge , nowever fnaanot bean proved asainsfc the Mwoners at . the-bar . Thatbeiigthe S ffc was laid aside ; but then they oamg to the « nt'Jl of sedition contained fa the [ iSfraent thl iSSS having found both the prisoner ?* $$ & ft jfi in he P « tionlar terms expressed in « S verdict . The finding ih-m gailty of tha nha «« of seditiw even in . the mJWt . m SproS iin the verdict , fmphed a cerfain nJim ?^ ntentlo * . It . & » jW tt . . fnteuff S SSS words which in the op nian of the w " 3 the jury were seditioas . He would not go thronS any of the partioulaw connected with this caT bnt he would just say that it was impossible fer aay calm and sober-tBindedman to read the Bjweohw dSSSff " and particular ^ to read the whole Vf them as S in evidence befsre the jury , and to look to tho site of thecountry , and notto see that they weraWiS
in tne onaraoter waicn the jury had given to i W namely , tWt they were calculated toSe popu £ disaffection to government , and to excite LiEf to lawful authority . If they bad 5 nSSfS all that wag their meaning and import . He wH not speaking at present ef the intention of the Dar . tin , bat was stating that that wM themeaS X import of the speeches which Lad been r « 3 in it dence . It would be a sad matter indwd if the deliver of such speeches m large ueaiblica bfpe « oD 8 dS del »'" ed . . aro oln where were aBserribled from 700 to 800 udiTiduh , and another in an openflel dTaUeu Brnntsfield Liaks , were not to ba reearded al rf «« i ;« . ous to-thabasVinfBKat . ofsociet ^ and w ? rf not to be approached by the law . flewMi , al £ ? mS selfte enter into the reasons b > which tWddiSS of these speeches was defended-lie" wonld not ilfow himself to enter into the views of the perEona ' dJ iv « mg them , and tf thejaBsooiation to ' wh . Vh th «
Deiongeu ; nut , ne would only Bay , that if thei views were accomplished by the- means the " £ & geB | tu u ou i - J 8 IB « Mfc , dangerous to the country and to the best-interests of the subject . While lW ever , heaaid . aUthis , heconld Jhepfeelinw aud it gave him great pain in being railed upon to pronounco gentenoe in this case . He wiBhuH thai he had ^ n saved this duty-it wS nntMlr very painful to have to pronounce senteoee 3 perBonssuoh as those at > the bar , who ; inall othS mpects , appeared to be tespeotable individual " The law , however must be put in force ; theicou ? t must dwoharge its . duty to the conntry . and it 3
not auowsuon . a tmng to fi o on , when a jury had found them guilty . It was , however , a great oonsh . lation to think that , as this case Jfi 8 ; Tt U undoubtedly a very ^ itigated case of sedition . He would give all weight to the proceedings of the jnry in disavowing the intention , and infndiujr that the angnage which was used , was not intended to exoite in the manner stale , . in the indiotoent . Then , again , he would take into consideration that tha terioui . oharge of conBpiraoy was Bet aside ; and fa theBe oiroumstances , they ought to proneuncTsen ? enoe with all possible leniency . He ^ waa eonviuSd that every person in the commnnit * . whnTjS
that the prisoners at the bar had Veen fairly and honourably convicted by a jury , would be of 0 £ that theaentence wkoUlw was to pronounce was aa lenientaone as possible . The senUnce which h ! would nropose wpnld be , that the prisonera be in ? priBoned for a period of four calendar monthB ' The w ) bd JDSiicB Ci . BBK . addr « Bing the prisoner ! : said : Henry Ranken , and Robert Hamilton if ™ , retain andcheriBh the sentiments and opiniena which were expressed in the speeches whichThave been proved in evidence against you , it ia quite unneoefc sary for . nw tojay more , in pronouneinjX JSS of the court , than this , that the object efpSS « to deter you and others from oommitUng tKe offeacea n time to come ; and thai , of eo ? i £ faS gardto you in particular , the repeHtion of siSilw offenoes , after punishment has once been pronounoed by this high , court , will operate most prejndiofou *
BgainstyouintneeveBtofanothercwiViction . Bnfi ri > I weuld fain hope and trust-I express it with , sinoenty . for I havecolleeted it somehow , I cannot , tell hew , in the course of this trial , from your whole manner and demeanour-that it is not likely thatyol ¦ > will again rashly , wantonly , and recklessly use each " language as yon have done on pwviom evasions . M " t } the situation which I hold , I think it is xriv dntt S rtatethatl do not think that the authorities inte ^ ' , fered one day too soon to prevent and itop meetinM ^ at which su « h language bb was proved in eVidisIS * wasopenlyand conetantly nttered ., I have now to deolare thatthe senteme of the court It , that von be ' , ltnprisonedJor a period of four morithfl . ' - 4 u S ^"' ¦ lwta * been "moved from tbe bar . "V the court Mjourned . "'*> . ¦ ¦
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A Mobder , the motives of whioh are involved in ' some mystery , took place' on Thursday night week , *' at BoBgival , sear Paris , in the house of M . Odilloa Barrot . That gentleman , being in the department A d Aisne , Mme . Barret , had , for her personal ae » onrity , caused her valet de chambre to fain fai roomadjoiningherown , During the night this Mont was entered , and two pistol shot * were fired aWfar- * - ^ valet de chambre , who , it is said , died itUhe ^ SKrfl 'On of the next day , without being able toatittabBSB ^^ * ounaBtaDces of . the attack . ^ f ^ W -r ^ m ^ pAy 17 >' . »" ' : ! . < A \ r-f-
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and in : S pECEKIBEB 2 , 184 b . , 1-n ^ - — ^^^ QBmpr . TAR . . ^ 7
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Dec. 2, 1848, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1499/page/7/
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