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TO THE PEUOG ^ nC ^ iTOKEING- I : men , ; ; ; ¦ ¦; "¦¦; : " , - ¦ : : Mt Fkiekds , —In the pages oftheNorrtern Star of last Saturday there appeared , directed against me , rather more than two columns of open abuse , and of sly insendo , fromthe pen of one of its editors , —the famous J . G . Harkey . I have noir to reply to this characteristic effusion ; a task so loathsome , that nothing could induce me to stoop to it , ' hut that the elegant epistle in question ha 3 an importance "belonging to it , from the facts tha t it has appeare d in the Northern Star , and , that in not icing it I shall he able to pall your attention to matters of much more importance to yon £ han the simple question—the dispute between the Jeroic Barney and myself .
Had I hut the object of personal defence in . new , I would hare allowed the " Billinsgate " to have found its own level , ' amidst , the other andean things . which have originated , at various times , in the same quarter ; and with s foil confidence that it would have passed into that oblivion , -which has . so long held from p ublic gaze the ancient Red cap and dagger ¦ Kith which the writer made his debut upon fhe stage of reform . I ought not , perhaps , to speak of the dead , but having introduced them , I may , from charity , in passing , consign them to " repose in peace . " After a description of two writers' in the Dispatch— -which , to my mind , was a most admirable likeness of himself—he proceeds thus : — It 1 ia «; l > eea-trrilj-s = 3 d , that a nao ' s "worst enemies are tinge ofhis own lionsehpiii : " and . the same may lie saii . nlien enemies late the guise of a man ' s 'friends and fellowJaDOurers . ' The Dispalck , tvLIIo -denouncing not jnadyiiiv « elfF . nd Mr . O'Connor , but also the Chartists in general , and the attempt to revive the Chartist agitation in par icnlar . takes care to favourably nonce * the very jueUcwa- speech of ¦ Mr- Clark / This t " rings me to the considelarion of a matter of more importance ilian the stupid and rltaM abuse indulged in bj the Dispatch . . . My answer to this is , that I . am of the , ' . ' household" of Ilrurney only so far as we are both members of tlie ^ National Charter Association ; and , that srLilstl am a "fellow labourer , " I have long felt , that the manner of labouring pursued by Mr .
Harnev Las been most mischievous and ruinous to our cicse , and serviceable to those who make disreputable advocacy an argument against the movements of the woriins classes . Tor the compliment paid to me by -. " Caustic , " —one of the writers in the Jil'l ^ attli ^ -ToT my speech at the meeting at the London Tavern , I am , of course , not responsible ; but , I nevertheless thank him most sincerely for it , and vr > 'l add , that his remarks upon the speech of ilr . Harney upon that , occasion , have my hearty concurrence , as it , is to such speeches that I attribute the disgraceful defeats of the several agitations for the Charter . Mr . Harney . in stating his reasons for making me the subject of b . 13 elevated criticism , observes : —
I fed bound to take this course in consequence of the manner in which 3 Ir . Clark ' s admirers—the Whig and Sam-Radical l * ress-gang—have thought fit to echo his sentiments . " I have another raason for taking tins course . This week Mr . Clark has been addressing public meetings ia Yorkshire and Lancashire , and I am creditably informed that his peculiar mission to Manchester was to set 'himself right ¦ with the Manchester men , '—I believe in relation to Ills patriotic conduct at Stepney ; It ' spossiMe . however , diat he may have been trjinj ; to ' set himself rijht 'either puWiciv or isrivatjly—in matters with which . I have connexion ; and as , unlike Mr . Clark , I have neither leisure nor ^ money to travel abont the country , T mast address jou . through the only medium open to me—the public Press .
Passing -over the vapid nonsense abont the " Press-jrang , " under irhose justifiable rebukes Hr . Harney is sniartinsr , I can assure you thatthe attributed motive of my recent visit to the north is a fvrt fabrication , * a 3 the men of Manchester and I reds * can testify . " Set my self right with the men of Manchester" for my " patriotic" conduct at the St 8 pnev meeting . Ay , indeed , if it were necessaiy , the ' best mode of setting mjself ligM at 3 Ianchester , wGuld be by doing the same thingthere —should similar circumstances occur—as I had the honour and gratification of having done at Stepney . I 3 t the emissaries of the Torie 3 go to Manchester , and propose such resolutions as were proposed by them at Stepney , and they / wi'l find that the men of Manchester , whom I went to conciliate , will be at f < eir post , and there I will be j » 1 so with my " patriotic" amendment , and ready to carry it asainsteven the formidable "X ' Ami" bJmself .
Bntiir . Barney says , "that , unlike me , he has neither the leisure nor the money to travel about the country . " Mr . Barney knew , when he wrote those words , that his income was nearly double the amount of mine , and that , therefore , with respect t - means , he was nearly doubly my superior . But it served his aoils purpose , to insinuate—what hia craven heart would not permeit him to to say , and he chose to leave the inference , rather than openly asseit that I was paid by your enemies to proceed upon a tour of self-defence . The meanness of this conduct can be equalled by nothinsr but its infamy and cowardice , ilr . Harney , in further reference to the Stepney ineerinss , says : —
I meddle not with the question at issue between Mr . Clark and Mr . Kydd ; hut must say that thetreatment expaiencetl "by RiclsaTA OastJer , —13 ie Victorious champion of the factory Giiiaren , and the life-Ions defender of the claims of Labour—was disgraceful to all concerned . The readers of this journsl must have blushed to see the report of that meeting in the Xorlh'XA Star ; ajournal in which ilr . Oastier advocated 'Protection to labour' years before Thomas Clark could have imagined he would ever become a 'leader , ' ana tie as 3 odr . te " of ' respectable reformers ";* and when , probably , his ideas on Ihe question of Labour ' s rants were widelv different from what they seem to be now .
The feeling excited at the meeting , was entirely owing to the shallow pretext by which it was songnt , in the name of the " Trades , " to cheat the ¦ working classes into an alliance with the Tory Protectionists , sad the disgust of the people at seeing a , mixture of professed Chartists and Socialists lending themselves io the miserable scheme . That Richard * Oasilei- was not heard at length was no fault of mine , as I several times tried to induce the meeting to hear him out , but . all to no purpose , as they declared tlist they had heard enough , and were folly satisfied of the corrupt character of the
meeting . I have respected Mr . Oastler ever since I havo fcnown him ; and had Mr . Oastler presented himself in less questionable company , and upon a more uprlfht occasion , I am satisfied that the same meeting -p-oi'ld hare listened to him with delight . I will not notice the small wit of the allusion to " respectable reformers , " hut will say , that my opinions of lahour ' s wants are the same now as they have always been , and that the insinuation of a change conveyed in the above paragraph , is another of the inventions of the noble-minded and truth-loving Mr . G . J . flarncY .
I hasten over that part of Mr . Harney ' s letter which relates to his own insignificant "protest " aga ' nst my conduct at Stepney , and his threat of the disposition of die Trades , whom I there saved from disgrace and sale ; and in reply to his query , respecting the probability of any but the Trades joining us in our demand for the Charter , I answer , lhat 7 < a ft not Itrn for X / te criminal violence and systematic fury of himself , and men of his stamp , that the Trades , and many , even above the Trades , would Have been , long since , in cur ranks , and that the term "Chartist , " instead of having become
allied with foll y and madness , would hare been the designation by which all good and t » atriotic men would have delighted to have been Known . Men do not object to the Charter in itself , so much as they dislike to be known as " Chartists , " becanse the past career of the movement has been stained by the abominations of frotti and fnry which liave been belched forth by the Barneys , and the various risings and riotings " to which their writings and speeches have given occasion . This brings me to the London Tavern , and the cause of the dissent to which I give utterance upon the occasion of the meeting which was held there .
You must understand , that the mectins was convened tor the i urpose of inaugurating thenew movement for the Charter , and that it was held in the very heart of ihe city of London ; and that , after the reverses of lS 43 . it was highly desirable that the speakers should have adopted such a tone as would their zeal , but also wita reliance npon their wisdom and tetion . The cause * of tbi failures of preceding efforts , have been admitted to have been incautious advocacy , and the consequent opportunity for the employment of government smes Tho
place ,-too , at which the meeting was held , rendered necessary even more than ordinary caution , Besides , we had prejudices to destroy , and enemies to convert , we had a mangled reputation to repair , and all things combined to make bombastical rant and sanguinary expressions , not only distasteful , but absolutely criminal . In tbc teeth of all these reasons Mr . Ilaroey , in Ms nsnal style , sneered at the friends of the " little Charter , " as he termed the measure of the National Reform . Association ; and in allusion to his favourite doctrine of " blood for hlood" said :
He repeated , there was no need to despair of France , and ¦ when France moved , she moTcd the world . The people of Europe would rise again , and then they wouia tre « t war pitiless and remorseless enemies as they deserved , and show them that mercy their oppressors had dealt to ^ people . : Ibr this abominable idea I did express my most nnauti gated abhorrence , and this Idid with the more " jiadiness from a knowledge of some of the anteee-1 oents of its author . What , then , was this the strain 111 wMch to introduce a new and improved agitation to lelialf of the Feople's Charter 1 ^ -Could not the jjtterer of this foul and atrocious sentiment have nf ^ r 7 more convenient a place than at a meeting I fi Chartisti , for the expression of an opinion , more { "" fed to savages tbaa iw enjigitened wmmanity
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of Englishmen , ? -0 r does it follow , that because » mn u a- Cfeuust that he is , therefore bound s connect himself wth opinions , that the most ultra Tory would be ashamed to express ? Had it been ihe first occasion upon which Mr . Harney hid delivered himself of this obnoxious opinion , bo much notice would not have been taken of it ; but the truth is , that he has done the same thing repeatedly Sun , fn aSfc Uti ? Mi the atrocit y * « wa » *™ ° that it would provoke a repudiation' from some of hw colleagues on the platform . Mr . Harney , in the Star of the . week before last , informed you that the majority of the meeting were with his views and against mine . This , is another coinage of his imagination ; for , I fearlessly assert , that no public meeting of Englishmen could be found that : would
sanction such an opinion as that which Mr . iJarney delights to call his own . It is to the honour of the working classes that they abhor blood ; and they have too high a notion of the meaning of true greatness , to sanction the atrocious doctrine , that to secure its liberty a nation requires to massacre , its defeated enemies ! Another reason why I disclaimed the " bloody " suggestion of Mr . Ilarney , was , as I have already told you , that I had a knowledge of some of his previous doings , and had seen their consequences , not only to the movement itself , but also to the imprisoned victims , many of whom were excited by the madness and fury of his sayings , in print and upon the platform . I had
seen him play the braggart before , and I had seen him act the . part , which is common , to all that kind of people , and shrink from the responsibilities of his own delinquent conduct , and ^ therefore , I would not be a party to a repetition of tho proceedings which had before brought upon us ruin , and upon the movement shame and dishonour ! , Why should you and I , working men , allow a cause which is dear to us , to be again made a prey to the miserable ambition of sham-heroes , and pen-and-ink'wamorsi —I at least will raise my humble voice against it , and will struggle against every attempt to return ¦ to the course of advocacy -which h ^ s . heretofore madeusabye-woi'dandascorn .. - :
Bat that you may not think that I am doing any injustice to Mr . Harney , and that you may see in its proper light , my horror of the braggart class , I will give you an instance of the bravery of Mr . Harney , under circumstances which were calculated to bring out in "boldrelief all the " metal . of his soul . " It is known to the readers of the Star , that from the ' time of the Trench Revolution in February 1848 , up to the meeting of the National Convention , in April of the same year , that Mr . Harhey was one of the most terrible of the violent orators , who were then " up to the mark , " and " ready for anything . " In the Convention , he was brave and daring , and upon the occasion of a deputation from that body—consisting of Mr . "Wilkinson , of Exeter ; Mr . G . W . M . Reynolds , aud myself , being appointed to
proceed to the Home Office , to assure the government of the pacific disposition of the Convention , and to ascertain what were really the intentions of the government , respecting the demonstration and procession announced for the following ^ Monday , the famous 10 th , and against which the government had issued a proclamation , Mr . Harney rose and moved , that " whatever might be the intentions of the government , that the deputation be instructed to inform the Home Secretary , on be ^ half of the Convention , that both the public meeting and the procession diall take place , and that if any interruption he ofiered by the government , that npon their heads shall rest the consequences . " This is not the exact phraseology of the resolution , but it is quite correct in substance . The deputation
went to the Home Office , and after a consultation with the Under Secretary , Sir D . Le Marchant ( who officiated for Sir G . Grey , the iatter being then at a Cabinet Council ) , the Attorney-General , and the chief magistrate from Bow-street , 3 \' r . Hall , we learned that the government intended to enforce tho Lts as they called it , and the deputation in reply , left with the government the determination of the Convention , as expressed in the resolution of Mr . Harney . Immediately on the return of the deputation to * the Convention , the answer to the government , ( Mr . narney ' s resolution ) , was ordered to bo printed , and was extensively circulated throughout London . Thus you will see the Convention was by this very resolution placed face to lace with the government , and the author of it , above all men ,
was bound to have observed it . "What I have just described occurred , as well as I can now recollect , on Thursday , the 6 th ; and upon the afternoon of Saturday , the Sth , anote was handed to me in the handwriting of Mr . Harney , inviting me to meet him at a public-house in the neig hbourhood of the place where the Convention met , that evening , after the adjournment of that body . I accordingly repaired to the appointed place , and on my arrival there , I found about six of the leading members of the Convention , all of whom had , liie myself , been invited by Mr . Harney . I had no knowledge of the object of the meeting , except that I expected to have had to combat some dreadful and sanguinary proposition , from the violent firebrand Harney : but judge of my astonishment ,
¦ when pale , trembling , and -with a manner , anything but consistent . with his warlike tone , in tho Convention and on the" platform , I . heard from his lips , a proposition to retire htforc tht opposition of Ute government , and to abandon both the-public meeting at Keiwington Common , and also the proctssion ! I had never before been mixed up in anything of . a dangerous character , with this man , but I had heard of the " Ship-yard" conspiracy , where he was said to have been absent , upon a certain occasion in 1839 , when the police presented themselves , and arrested Iris colleagues , and where lie also -was expected to have been upon that occasion . I had heard of his invitation to the working classes , in the same year , to "tuck up their sleeves and go at it ; " I knew that he was , at that time , set down throushoBi the country as a spy , owing to the
extravagance , and bloodthirstiness of- his language , and the fact of his continued security when his more moderate compeers were safely lodged in gaol . I knew that in 1842 , he was accused of playing the part of a " Puling Spooney , " in the proceedings of the Convention at Manchester ; I knew that the working classes of Sheffield , on that same occasion , were so exasperated at his duplicity and betrayal of them , as they regarded it—first exciting them by the brutality of his language , and when bis position with them became dangerous , trying to skulk from the post of " honor" —that they would have inflicted personal chastisement upqn him , had : he not kept himself out of their reach . I say , I knew most of these things upon the authority of " some of the oldest and ablest men in the movement , " but I had never before been personally a witness of a trial of hii valour .
I objected to the abandonment of the intended meeting , especially , as not only dangerous to our cause , but also a 3 an act of cowardice on our parts , personally , and it was decided , in spite of t * he begging entreaties of Mr . Harney , that matters should bo allowed to take their course . On Monday morning , the 10 th , it was agreed by the Convention , previous to starting for Kennington Common , that the Executive Committee — of which it will be allowed 1 was the most active member , —Mr . M'Grath being chairman , Mr . Doyle secretary to the Convention , and Mr . O'Connor often absent—should have the entire management of the proceedings ; and thus passed over a day , the glory of which consisted in the answer which it gave to swaggering braggarts , wfct prate of the disposition of the people to violence arid Woodshed . And this , my friends , is the man , who instead of appearing before us in sackcloth , doing penance for his crimes against our
cause , has actually had the audacity to appear again upon our platform , and there to degrade us all in the eyes of the world , by connecting the great , and pure cause of Chartism , with the advocacy of the resuscitation of the guillotine , as the engine _ of a victorious people's political vengeance . . This is the man who has devoted two columns to the abuse of me for what he is pleased to term my moderation , and who . a short time ago , actually recommended PRIVATE ASSASSINATION through the columns of the Star , as the best means of establishing his favourite scheme of " Justice" and " Fraternity . "Read the following extract from tho letter of " L'Ami du Peuple , " in the Northern Star of Saturday , September loth , 1849 , and ask yourselves if , in your " own households , " and seated at your " own hearths , " when surrounded by your own offspring , in what state of mind must the writer , Harney , have been , when ho penned the following diabolical
advice : — Most probably it "ill not be on the barricade , nor in the deadly breach , nor on the tented field that the defenders of justice win henceforth combat the slaves of Uood-reekinj tyranny . If they would succeed , they mutt fall on tht employers of the assassin-soldiery in their own h < iu $ ehold * / and combat the enemies of freedom on their own hearths . The universal rising of the Proletarians—the holy tear of the labourers against all their oppressors—the combat ; not against the tools of tyrants , bnt the tyrants themeelvei—is the good teorJs which must next be wrouglit , and to prepare the people fev which , is the tacred mission of all true reformers ! ' !
There my friends , what think you of that ? Was I right when I applied the term " bloody democracy" to the state of things which this imbecile edition of Marat would bring about ? A sacred mission" indeed , he has chalked out for all "truere-I formers I" I am not aware if Madam Tussaud has lip her " Chamber . of Horrors" a depository of literary atrocities , but if she has , I think the above contribution from the Chartist Septembrist , would be a valuable acquisition , - One more extract from the letter of Mr . Harnoy , and I have done . He says : —
Mr . Clark , in bis tpeech ' as spoken—though not as reported in the Star— declared that lie desired 'tostand ont in bold relief from the writer of this letter . I desire h * fhould do to , for I 6 hoald be very sorry that friends or foes should imagine me to be of ihe same Bchool as Thomas Clark . It is true I am a Chartist , and Mr . Clarlc professes to be the same ; but there are all concurrence of opinion and action both begins and ends . I am nappy to Ue m th # position to be able to add , that some of the oldest and th . ablest of the champions of Charbnn as wml / agreed withmjTWWfiM they strongly di « ien » fromtooM of Mi . Our * , ,
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"From what I have already said- « ifc " will appear plainly . enough , that G : J , ; Harney and T . Clark do not much resemble each other and I think I have shown good cause of difference .. ' . "¦! ,. . " , : With respect to the opinions of tho " oldest and ablest champions of Chartism , " I can only observe , that if they _ haye any plan for getting the Charter , let them point it out , that it may be examined . The onus is upon them to do so , and if they cannot , then I ask what dpes , it amount to that they agree with Mr . Harney ? It is all very well for these " oldest and ablest champions" to talk glibly about the Charter ; but 1 Bay that I want them to mark out
clearly howifc . is to be obtained . Can this be done ? If so , then why ia it not done ? I propose to aid efficiently in every useful and practical extension of the suffrage , as the surest and safest , and , intact , tho only means of arriving at the deserved end . , I have to state to you frankly , that I ' am not satisfied when , upon looking back upon the result of « ur labours for the past ten years , I find the most perceptible of them to be " victims " and " victim funds "—friends in dungeons at ' homo , arid in chains abroad—our party scattered , and their hopes all but destroyed . Let the " oldest and ablest champions " answer ; are we riot to have something more prolific of £ [ ood in the future ? And if so , point : to the means 1 . "
I charge upon platform violence and stupidity the miscarriage of our former attempts , and foremost amongst the most stupid ana mischievous of the orators I rank G . J . Harney . . .: Thomas Clark . London , Jan . 30 , 1850 .
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TO THE DEMOCRATIC WORKING . . ; / - MEN . - . - ¦ ¦ ¦ i . . ; - My Friends , —Owing to my connexion witlrthe Star , I have seen Mr . Clark ' s , lctter before publication , and , consequently , am" in a position to -answer ., him- at . once . ¦ Under ordinary ; circumstances , I would not have used the privilege of my office , but would have allowed my opponent ' s letter to . have remained umabticedrforthe time usual in newspaper discussions . But Mr . Clark ' s utter disregard of all the decencies of controversy , his falsehoods , and- distortions of facts , must not be allowed to diffuse their author ' s venom , even for one \ veek , without the counteractive truth on my part ; ¦ • . '¦ ' .. '¦•¦• "' . •¦ . The reader will not fail tocontrast the tone of
niy former letter , with that of Mr . Clark ' s reply . I was warned by friends , both in Lohdonand the country , of the sort of concoction ; I might expect . In London , several persons who well know the man , warned me , that although it would be impossible for him to- refute the statements and arguments of my letter , he would give mo a ; " pretty considerable " , dose of blackguardism . In a letter received from a friend in . the country , I / was informed that Clark had told him that he must return to
London to get Ms repl y inserted in tho Star . My friend answered that he ; had no need to put himself to that trouble , because from Harney ' s well-known love of fair-play ,- ho would not refuse to insert anything he ( Clark ) might send . ¦ ¦ Clark ' s answer was : " No ; not the sort of answer I intend to write . " Thns pretty plainly intimating that he intended his answer to be not in accordance with fair play . Mr . Clark ' s letter has not surprised me . Knowing the man , and knowing that , under the too-transparent guise of borrowed " respectability " " and aristocratic apeislmess , there exists a being as coarse in his ideas as he is
" unclean" in conrersatipn , a decent letter from him was not to be expected . The man who , as Land Director , lolling . in an arm-chair , with his feet on a fine carpet , and surrounded by all the luxuries of " office , " cannot give a civil answer , or write a civil letter to a struggling " allottee , "or apooraud anxious " member" of the Land Company , hotwithanding that to those parties he owes the bread He eats , was not very likely to write a decent reply to a man who had sounded the depths of his political duplicity , and forced the frightful unmasking of himself exhibited in the foregoing epistle . , ¦
Mr . Clark acknowledges himself .. " sincerely thankful , '' for the crumbs of laudation thrown from the Dispatch table ; and avows that " the remarks upon the speech of Mr . Harkey , " have his " hearty . concurrence . ' * Why-not add , that the remarks 'On the speech of Mr-. O'Connor , the denunciations levelled againstthe Chartists generally , the condemnation of the attempted revival of Chartism , and the filthy outpourings against the Proletarians of Paris , stigmatised as " vagabonds of the gutters , " have also his " hearty concurrence ? " I shall presently remind you of
Mr . Clark ' s former , and widely different estimate , of the praise and censureof the Dispatch , when I come to notice his raking up of dead and buried calumnies . Mr . Clark is proud of being the pet of the Dispatch ; and in one part of his letter vaunts of his influence at Manchester . I will here quote from the report of a speech on this very subject , delivered by a man who can command the attention of assemblages at Manchester , far larger than any that would listen to Mr . Clark . Mr . Walter Cooper , speaking at Farringdon Hall , on Sunday evening , January 20 th 7 observed that : —
"Mr . Clark had been lauded in tbe Dispatch of to-day . ( Hisses . ) Now , God preserve him from envying Mr , CJnrfc the praises of the DUpatcli , as , if the Dispatch were to euloaise him , he should begin wondering what damnable deed he had committed . Neither did he envj Mr . Clark the position he . would hold in the estimation of the working classes . But the Dispatch at the same time had made a most -riUanous and dastardly attack upon Jlr . Julian Ilarney . And why ! Becaus * he had defended the brave outriers of Paris , whom the Dispatch called the ' vagabonds of the gutters '—the gallant fellows wh » had shouldered their muskets : and for three nights guarded the property of the bourgeoise in the streets of Paris , during the strife and tumult , consequent on revolution . Because Mr . Julian Harney had advocated national property in land . Because , in fact , ho wished to open the eyes of the many , to the trickery and humbug of the Financial Reformers .
It suits Mr . Clark ' s purpose to " pass over the vapid nonsense about the press-gang , '' " under whose justifiable rebuke , " he says , " Mi-. Harheyis smarting ! " Poor fellow ! It is too evident he is smarting . In my letter , I stated that " Air . Clark ' s admirers—tho "Whig and sham radical press-gang—had thought fit to echo his sentiments . " And I added , commenting on the Stepney meeting , " one fact
should not be lost sight of ; Mr . Clark was favourably reported , and , in several instances , complimented by the very journals that , not long since , were in the habit of vomiting the foulest vituperation on the heads of the Chartists , for moving Charter amendments at the Anti Corn Law meetings . " Hr . Clark , in his , dignity , passes over all this as " vapid nonseuse . " His silence on these and many more matters in my letter , uunoticed by him ,
vouches for his"discretion . I have no wish to meddle with Mr . Clark's income , or hiB mode © f expenditure . I have stated the fact , that I have neither leisure nor money for travelling about the country . Mr . Clark seems to have both . He is a lucky man . Whether his travelling charges are defrayed from his own private purse , or by enemies or friends of the people , is a matter on which lie is best fitted to speak , and respecting which I neither know nor care . In the meantime , it may be most convenient to " pass over" that matter also .
Mr . Clark "hastens over" what he terms my " insignificant protest" against his conduct at the Stepney meeting . ' I fancy he will not so easily get over the hostile spirit he has evoked amongst the veritable working men of London . His attempt to exculpate himself from the charge of having called up that hostile spirit , by vapouring about " criminal violence and systematic fury , " preventing . the Trades and other parties joining the Chartist movement in times past , will not serve him .
It is by his own conduct in the present , that obstructions have been set in the way of the Trades co-operating with the Chartists . He takes credit to himself , for having saved the Trades from being cheated into an alliance with the " Protectionists . " He may assure himself , that it will be long ere he will receive a testimonial of gratitude from the Trades for his chivalrous performance of the duties of aaviourship . - That he several times tried to get a hearing for Bichard Oastler can be best
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spoken . toi . bjr . those-who . were ^ at ! th e meeting . From-whatily have ¦ heard ^ itobelievei-Richard Oaatler liimselfc-will not-endorse / Mr ^ Claris account ? f h | s own honourable convict on that occasion . ; As , r egards ! tiia $ reat ; 6 f what he will dp at Manchester , if the occasion offers , ; I give him ai friendl y word ? not . too-try . . the Stepney game there , ; unless he is rare of-the absence of RicharU Oastler , ¦ ' ' ! ; ; ' . Mr . Clark avers thathi s ^ opimons of Labour ' s wants . are ; tb . e same now as-they have always been . Perhapsso . Butif ^ o , he has been an exception to ; the usual ordeiyof factory workers j and T predict , thatshould « Parliamentary Reform , " or the influence of his '
middleclass friends , ever lift him into the iabuse of Commons , ' he will have . to very . materiall y change his opinions respecting " Labour's wants , " otherwise ho will not ' for long wear the honours of a " popular iiiember . ? ' ¦ ' « Protection to Labour" has hitherto been the pr ime motive for seeking the Charter . AH trades are demanding protection—veritable labour protection . The factory workers are , even ^ now demanding further legislative interference ,, and more legislative protection , in order to make the Ten Hours Bill a verity . -Seeing that Mr . Clark is an aspirant for : Parliamentary honours , it is to be hoped that on this " question of "Labour ' s wants" he will "iak a thought an '; ihend . " ' , , ' , ., ..--¦ .:,. . , ¦ ; ' . ; ,, ; . ; ,. ; .
Mr . . ; Clark avers that / 'the causes of the failures of preceding efforts have been" admitted to "iave ; been ; . . iucautipus : ' advocacy . " Who so admits ? Let him ' speak ' : for , himself , put not for others ; for he jllftB hofauthOfityV to proclaim ? himself the great 1 } AM ,-the embodiment of Public Opinion . ' ^ Mirk how generously he acquits the Government ; the Legislature , the Press , the ; Middle ' Classes , ; &c ., & £ , , pf " -all responsibility ,- " and ' v laysit the ^ ^ entire blame to " incautious advocacy . ' * ? ¦ - . ;¦ Mark , too , that lie attempts to make me responsible for
all the" incautious advocacy " ' in the past and present . Certainly T cannot' lay ; claim to . a superabundance of caution—ra quality which is ever largely possessed byi selfish , and Tcoldbloeded schemers , and intriguers .. But supposing there has been "incautious advocacy , ¦' and that I have been one of the « ' incautidus , " can Thomas Clarlc lay . his hand on his heart , and running over the history of Chartism as recordeded in the Northern Star , declare that I have been the . only , or the principal " criminal ? "' .. : ' ; : : .
- ¦ .-Mr . Clark quotes the following from my speech at the London Tavern : — ¦ - ...- ¦ h . ; He repeated , there was no need to despair of France , and when Franco moved , she moved the world . - The peoples of Europe would rise again , and then they would treat their pitiless and reinorsele 63 enemie ? -as they deserved , and show them that mercy their oppressors had dealt to the people . ... .. .. . ¦ ... -. - . ; . . - . .. . . •' . He-adds :, " For this : abominable idea I did express my most unmitigated abhorrence ^" He then goes on to describe the above' as a ' . 'foul and- ' atrocious sentiment ; " arid further characterises the above as *' ah opinion more
suited to savages than an enlightened community of Englishmen . " To all this I have only toanswer , that I repudiate not one word of the above sentiment . Mr . Clark ' may ' . mouth about " atrocity , " " savages , "_ and tell of his " unmitigated abhorrence , " but I-defy him . to write down , or speak down , a sentiment which has taken possession of the hearts of millions of the cheated and cruelly-wronged peoples of Europe . Mr . Clark adds : " Mr . Harney ! in the fitur . the week ' before last , informed you thatthe majority of the meeting Avere with his views , and against mine . This is another
coinage of his imagination ; for I fearlessly assert , that no public meeting of Englishmen could be found that would sanction such an opinion , as that which Mr . Harney delights to call his own . " What is the nso of Mr . Clark writing about "could , " and "would , " when the fact is , as hundreds in this " metropolis can testify , that the majority of ; the . meeting'idid applaud my sentiments , and expressed unmistakeable opposition to his . Mr . Clark ' s brazen assertion of the contrary ^ •• will enable ¦ yon to measure his veracity in matters Iain about to caUyour . attention to . '¦' . ' . ¦ , -
Mr . Clark introduces the revelation which , he imagines is destined , to crush me , with a sneer about my being , brave and daring in the convention of 1848 ; meaning b y this sneer , that I was violent and bragging before all other members . I have taken the trouble to glance ovev the report of the proceedings of that body as published in the Northern Star , and find that my speeches were among the moBt moderate delivered at that tim » . The resolution which he professes to quote , word for word , and which he says , I moved , never had existence , save in the coinage of his own
imagination . It was not on Thursday the sixth of April , that the deputation was sent to the Home Office , buton Friday tbe seventh . At the meeting of the convention that morning , Mr . T , M . W 7 « eeter moved , " That the convention should issue a proclamation declaring their determination to hold their meeting on Monday notwithstanding the foolish proclamation of the Government , and notice of the . police . " Mr . Cuffay seconded the motion , which was supported by the following delegates in the . following order : —Messrs . West , Child , Adams , Shaw , Stevenson , Cochrane , Bolwell , Watson , Wilkinson , O'Connor , Kydd , Ernest Jones ,
McCarthy , Francis , Reynolds , Clark , Aston , Lightowlev , Wild , Dixon , Fussell , Donovan , and G . J . Harney , who said , "Mr . Donovan had alluded to foreigners ; he could assure them that nothing but the most profound respect prevailed in their breasts for the rights of Englishmen , and they would refrain from attending the procession , for reasons he need not state . He wished no armed men to surround him . ' Several other delegates supported the motion , which was then carried . I am next reported as . reading an article from the Times of that day , and appealing to the Convention to denounce the editor of that
paper as a " base calumniator . " Mr . Reynolds moved : —" That a deputation be despatched to Sir George Grey , to acquaint the Government that they have no intention , and never had , to make any armed display on Monday . " Mr . T . Clark seconded the motion , and after some other delegates had spoken , " Mr . Gr , J . Harney supported the motion , but . wished the Government to be informed tliat'they ' had resolved to hold a procession- — peacefully and legally . " The motion was carried .
Every one will see that there is the greatest possible distinction between a formal resolution , such as Mr . Clark has invented , adopted by , and binding the Convention , and the ex pression of a mere individual sentiment , for which the body at largo could not be held responsible . The Convention riot haying passed any resolution of mine , it was impossible that arty such resolution should have been " printed and circulated about London . " , Thus , like a house of cards puffed down by a breath , falls the monstrous fabric of falsehood piled upon falsehood , so cunningl y conceived , but so clumsily executed by my desperate and unscrupulous opponent . '
It is true , that in answer to the police notice , forbidding the meeting , &c , " a proclamation" announcing " thefirm determination " of tho Convention to hold a meeting and procession , was printed and circulated ; but I neither suggested , nor drew up , nor proposed the adoption of that proclamation . What I did propose you shall now learn . On the return of the deputation from the
Home Office , and on Mr . Reynolds having delivered the report , Mr . Harney moved , — " That the report of the deputation to the Home Secretary be' printed , . p lacarded about London , and circulated in the country ; and that the thanks of the Convention be given to the members of the deputation , for the satisfactory manner in which they had discharged their duty . " Mr . Clark then not being so " respectabl y connected" as at present , could
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npt . ; anbrd ; toiturn ' : up ; hia nos ^ - at a-vote ^ thanksi eveni though . moved by , Ji ^ iamiHarney . , - I-cbmelnow to that terrible ! conspiracy—the private meeting ^ - ^ That-such a meeting did take placelstrue . 'I will answer presently Clark ' s account of my appearance ; on'that occasion . I must here observe that , ; within four and tweniiy hours , events hadr progressed rapidly , TBe Times , and other . journals , had ' excited the utmost fears'of the "higher ' - ' and middle classes ; the-shopocracy were mustering in thousands , to : be sworn in as " specials ;'' the government ' s murderous preparations went on ; every hour the ¦ strength of our adversary , and pur own weakness , became more and more apparent . There was , no longer any mistake
that , if w ; e . meant to proceed with the . procession , it would be a fig ht from the moment of leaving Kennington-common , in the direction of the Houses of Parliament , and for which the people were certainly not prepared . It may be said . this should have been foreseen when the Convention voted the proclamation in reply to the police . True . It was undoubtedly a rash act to defy our enemy , without first . well considering our ' own strength ^ aud his . . I shared in the rashness of that act , and so did Mr . Clarlc . But , I repeat , I was not the author of the proclamation , nor its principal promoter . I ' assented toi-itin common with the rest , and I think I 'dia ; noii act very wisely ; ' By why did " ihe . CQol and cautious Mr . Clark raise his
voice against this committal of the Convention "face'toiface . with ; the -Government ? " Go back to my words , not my ' resolution ; for I m ^ eC ; Ponp | to what did they commit the Convention—if that body could be committed at all by | the : mere words of an individual—? " . MivHarrieywished the Government to . be informed ; that they had resolved to hold a prcl-. cem 6 u ,. peaceably and legally . " But by . Saturday evening'the 8 th of Apnl , it' was ^ evident to every man in London , that a peaceable and legal procession ( the . Government construing the law , and " 'having iriarshalled its armed forces ) , was an impossibility . If , then , under these circumstances , I had proposed the
abandonment of the procession , I should have been guilty of neither inconsistency nor cowardice-But b y Saturday afternoon it was pretty well understood that Mr . Clark , and his colleagues were not at ali likely to lead a fighting procession ; and every other kind of procession being , under the circumstances impossible , the procession was ^ theiefore , already •' virtuall y aibandoned .- \ But ^ the "Public Meeting ! Seeing the hopelessness of the procession , Idid Men desire to abaadon the public meeting . ¦ _ Why ? Because I saw ; that the . meeting without the procession would , ia fact ; be a failure .. Situated as we were ,: Idesired . that instead of tho meeting , the delegates themselves should proceed as a body 'from-the Convention . with the petition , and
attempt to carry it to the House of Commons . , 1 knewthat if th ' scoum was carried outit would place the delegates , myself included , in danger . I knew that if . the police U 3 ed their truncheons or cutlasses , weVweve likely to pretty generally receive marks of their loyalty . I knew that such a course , would probably involve our . arrest on the spot , and so bring to ; an issue . before the judges a question vre were incompetent to determine in our own favour , by an appeal to arms . Did the course I devised savour of cowardice ? The meeting came to nothing . Mr . Clark and his friends , looking forward to a field-day of spouting , and nothing more , could afford to be . valourous . For my part , some of my personal friends not having attended , I judged it unnecessary to fully develope my views . Moreover , it was sufficient for me that the majority decided that in their opinion the meeting was advisable
under ' any circumstances . I at once assented , and from that moment showed as much readiness a 9 Mr . Clark ihimself , to take my share in the forthcoming meeting . ; Most assuredly , if I had felt any trepidation , I should riot have selected ^ Mr . Clark and his friends to bo the witnesses of my fears . I admit , that though guided by a pure motive and a desire only to serve the interests of the movement , I was , nevertheless , "incautious" — "incautious" in placing faith in the honour of Mr . Clark . A man has no more right to reveal the particulars of a private meeting , than ho has to reveal the contents of a private letter . Is Mr . Clark qualifying to play the part of . an "informer ? " Certainly his disregard of truth when it suits his purpose ; to deal in falsehood , might help to qualify him for that ofBce . . . . . ' . ...:... . ; . ;
> He pretends that I appeared at the above named meeting " pale and trembling , " and adds , that in spite of my " begging entreaties , " it was decided that matters . shouFd take their course . It is impossible for me , at this moment , to communicate with persons who were at that meeting , —Mr . Kydd , the only friend at hand , was not present , but I can refute Mr . Clark by tho very beat circumstantial evidence . . Throughout the sittings of . tho . Convention , I waft daily in the company of John West , Samuel Kydd , and Ernest Jones ; and several times in the company of other delegates of less note . 1 appeal to them whether , from the first moment to the last , they ever saw me as described by Clark , " pale , " " treitfbling , " and giving expression to
" entreaties , " based on fear ? If they are honourable men they will speak out , and convict my calumniator of falsehood . Ernest Jones I cannot appeal to now— -but on his liberation I doubt not that he will do me justice . You have read Clark's account of my demeommr on Saturday evening , If I ¦ was then so terror-atruck , surely twenty-four houi' 3 later I should have been still more afraid . Well , that ( Sunday ) evening , I wa 8 with Clark and others , in company with Mr . O'Connor and a friend of his ( whose name I will not drag into this discussion ) , at Osborne's Hotel . Let Mr . O'Connor say if 1 was
then " pale , " "trembling , " &c . The next morninp , the 10 th of April , was I absnnt at the meeting of delegates ? . On the contrary , I ' was in attendance before many others , and when tho roll iras called I answered tp my name . On leaving the Institution , in John-street , I took my place next to Mr . O'Connor , on the . front seat of the carriage . Arrived at Kennington Common , I accompanied Messrs . West and- Heynolds to address the Irish section of the meeting ; and my Bpeech ia on record in tho Star . Turn to that speech and see if it betrayed symptoms of fear ? Ask MeBsrs . Weat and Reynolds how I conducted myself in their company .
, That either on the Saturday evening , or any other occasion , I appeared " pale and " trembling , '' or at all conducted myself as represented by Clark , is afoul and villanous falsehood ; and Clark knew that he was penning gross untruths , —falsehoods without any foundation—any excuse , savo the wickedness of his own heart and the recklessness of his inveterate hatred . The Red Cap , the dagger , tho tuck in if up the sleeves , the Ship-yard conspiracy , arc with tho exception of the first named which I have never
disavowed ; pure calumnies , as Clerkwell knows , and as ere now ho himself has declared , The " Puling Spooney" was disposed of in March last , in my affair with Mr . O'Connor respecting Republicanism , when tho following lettors appeared in the Star : — Accrington , March 20 th , 1849 . Mr DeAU IlAnNFy , —I will atones say , what I have of tea said , that a more manly defence than yours was never made . ' ,. 'fliine fraternally , William BeesleY .
. Kivkdale Prison , March 21 st , 1849 . . MtDeahIIahney , —I cannot think that tho portion of p'Connor ' s letter , referring to the Lancaster trials , can he intended to apply to you . lam certain , that every man who witnessed your conduct on that . occasion , must have admired tho manly and honourablo manner in which you aequitted yourself , . Ygur ' s truly , James Ieach . I can now understand who was tho creature that poisoned the car of Mr . O'Connor , and caused that gentleman to give currency . to statements one of whioh—the " Puling Spooney" invention—called forth the letters from Messrs , Beesley and Leach , As to tho Sheffield affair , it is true that by acting in accordance with the wishes of the Sheffield
Chartists I incurred the displeasuro of men who had never before , nor havo they oror since , been connected with the true and steadfast friends of the Charter . George Cavill , Edwin Gill ( in the Star office ) , and other old Chartists can testify , that not for one day did I shrink from tho performanco of my duties . Tho " personal chastisement" is purely and simply the coinago of Mr . Clark ' s imagination . But why would he , in the blindness of his hatred , stumble upon Sheffield ? No vote of censure was ever passed upon me by Sheffiold Chartists ; yet something like a vote of censure was passed upon Mr . Clark bv the . Chartist
Council , when ho backed out of his election contest with Mr . Roebuck . On that occasion , having sent him the Sheffield letter before publication , Tie acknowledged , himself in the Star indebted to my " kindness . " Yes , he then , professed to value my kindness , notwithstanding that according to his present revelations , ho rausjfc have well-known all the atrocities — Red Cap , Ac , < fec , Ac ., which now move him to such eloquent denunciationsv I shall now proceed to convict Clark on the evidence of Clark . His words in the past snail condemn him in tho present . . , , In'December , 1846 , myself , my gallant friend Carl Sehapper , and the Fraternal Democrats , were denounced by the Vispatfh , Oa that occasion the
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iispatch ^^ brought up' againstr ' ra ' e the- - ' . ' -Bed- ; . oajj >; "' tKe ' "' dagger , " " . Ship-yard ; "' $ c : v-&c . ; J ^ A . . meeting of the society was held at their thenplaceof meeting in Drury-lane , and " Thomas Clark , : of -tha Charti ' st'Executive , " was . appointed chairman . I read a reply to the Dispatch ., Carl Sehapper , ChristopKer Doyle , Charles . Keen . ( one ol . the Ship-yard members ) , and ' others , spoke at that meeting ; and a string ' resolutions , expressing confidence in and thanks to me , and " unqualified censure " , on the Dispatch / moved by ^ Christ opher Doyle , and seconded by John Arnott ,, ; Were , unanimously . adopted . On that occasion—nearly . eight years after / the " Red cap , '" the " Ship-yard . " affair , theinvontipri of the "dagger , " . &c ., &b . ; upwards of four . " , rears after the&iregedbetrayal , &c , at Sheffield ; and nearly four years after the alleged timo of the " puling spooney "—the Chairman , MR . THOMAS CLARK , delivered the following speech . ( Northern Star-: Dec . 20 , 1846 . ) ,
Tile Cliainnan said , I-think friends thoro can he ho doubts upoa your minds , as to the ' vigour' of language which can be employed by the editor of the Dispatch "" when it suits his convenience . In the present instance , ' ' however , it must he admitted , that his ' vigour" has been exercised to little purpose , as I am convinceil that no maii-who lias the least knowledge of Julian ITaniev ' s public or pri . rate character , will bo found to sympathise with the infamous and calumnious statements , which avo contained in the paragraph in question . ( Loud cheers . ) Fcrinjowa part . I . feel the utmost gratification in haying the opportunity which my present position affords me , of expressing tlie high esteem iu which I hold the patriotism ami worth of my friend Julian Harney . ( Loud cheers , ) I have known htm t ' or many yours as a public , man , arid during tho last five or six yew s , Ihave been honoured with his personal confidence , and from'all ' 'that- 'I 'have seen oif'hhn , I am
fiiUy justified in asserting ,, that a more pure or singleminded patriot does not exist .- ( Hear , aud cheers . ) And bear in mind , ; friends , that tbe opinions Ilmye expressed of Julian Harney ( are not particulnr ] y _ my own , but , to my personal knowledge , they are participated in by the great democratic party throughout the country . : ( Cheers . ) I have but just returned from a tour through the principal towns in the provinces , and I can assure this meeting that 110 man stands higher in the estimation of the real movement party thnn the person agninst whom tlie scriOo of thflj Dispatch lias shot his' yenomed , but . pointless darti ( Cheers . ) : ^ Julian Harney enjoys ouv confidence . ( Hear , and cheers . ) And notwithstanding that , we sulijedt ourselves to the fire of the Dispatch' battery , we will express that confidence . ; ( Hear , hear . ) The writer , ' does ; not know , Julian Ilarney , ' ' never saw Julian Havn » j , ' but nevertheless I . harbour an instictiye idea , tliat the conduc tors of tho Northern Star newspajper , are not altogether ' unknown * tothe ' authorof this benstly libel . ' ' 1 ;( Hear . and cheers . ) And as 'dates'and circumstances are so
fiuthfully (?) chronicled by this 'friend of Poland , ' , 1 labour under the impression that Julian Harney is indebted to the assiduity aria industry of other "friends of dsmocnicy' than the ' we''of the " Dispatch , for tho ' facts' wh ' ch ' ure ebronicled in Ihe disgusting , and unmanly article , but owing partly to the exertions of . Julian Harney himstHV ' a . mind : has been created in the ' cpuntrr , " - which can : distinguish between the fair and honourable criticism of an editor , and such scandalous , and yet . futile attacks , as . that which has been made upon our esteemed aud worthy secretary , Julian Harney , strong in the consciousness of his own integrity , can afford to despise this paltry attempt , to injurs him in the public estimation , but it is our duty to notict it as abase preversion of Uie functions of a public writer ,, and as an act which merits our strongest commendation ; seeing that it corrupt the press , which is the source from , whence the public habitually derive their impressions ' of men and things , and is , therefore , an abuse of » ne of the noblest . institutiona of which the age can boa 6 t . ( Great applause . ¦ - . •; : : ' . . ; . ?;
With reluctance , I pass over some minor matter * , to come to his charge ot PRIVATE ASSASSITSTATICW , :, The candid Mr . Olark quotes tho passagewhich suits his purpose , no more : The extract ib taken from a letter on Swiss affairs , written " at tho moment when ,, in Autumn last , Switzerland was menaced ; with the fate ofKomo and Hungary . Tho reader will find the letter in Ml , in the Star of Septemher 15 th , 1849 . ¦ ' ¦ :: Looking forward to th « probability of a . genei'al attack of the Eurbpeart tyrants on Switzerland , I wrote : — ... . Abtwithstanding its- limited population , ' Switzerland could very speedily bring a hundred thousand . troops into the field . It is true that , as regards numbers , tJiis forcethough enormou 8-could he soon outmatched by the num . berless hordes of Kussia , Austria , and Prussia—to- say nothing of France . But over and above the regular troops , the male adults generally are well Versed in the use of
the rifle , and the natural features of tho country give its ' defenders advantages over every other nation in Europe . - [ anticipate that the tools' of the tyrants will meet with wnrm work , should they attempt the conquest of Switzer * land ; yet , I must add my conviction , that in the event of a struggle , the Swiss will be crushed . In these days mere , physical bravery does not avail to iave a people from destruction . Hot lliltiades , nor Themistocles ,. nor even teo . nldas , were they living now , could save their countrymen from slavery had they to contend against the physical force of the modern tyrants of the world , ; ' Theseicn < : e (?) of war has now reached a perfection which ensures to those who can command the necessary strength in men and metal , the triumph , however vile'their cause . " in these days a Wallace could not exist - for ' a week , and ' a Tyler would he crushed the moment he raised'the stan - dard of revolt . Were Switzerland again enslaved , I doubt if even a Tell could redeem her . .. - •
Most probably it will not be on the barricade , nor in th » - deadly breach , nor on the tented field . ' that the dofenderi of justice will henceforth combat the slaves of 'blood-seeking Tyranny . ' If they would . succeed they must i ' all upon the employers of the assassin-soldiery in their own households , and combat the enemies of Freedom on their own hearths / The universal ! rising of the Proletarians—the holy war of the Labourers against all their opppressors—the combat , not agaiust the tools of ¦ tyrants , but tin ; tvrantg themselves , is tlie good work which must next by nrought ; and to prepare the people , for which is tho sacred mission of all " true Reformers .
These sentiments are mine ,-and though I stood alone I would not shrink from avowing them ; but I do not stand alone . Mr . Clark may affect to hold up his hands in horror ,-and shout "diabolical ;" he may excite the Press-gang to raise the howl of " bloody democracy , " but 1 have the best assurance , that those sentiments are approved of by a majority of tho veritable democrats ; -who can Uiatinguish . between " private assassination , " and the killing , by the people , in self defence , of wholesale assassins—ruffians who train and pay their human machines to murder the people , and " mow down in masses . " • .
"Writing this letter within throe honrs of tha paper going to press , I am compelled to leave awns matters unnoticed , which other \ rise I would have done ample justice to . A word on oii ' e subject ere I conclude . Supposing that I were all that Clark has represented me to be ; supposing that every circumstance inmy political life from Ship-yard , " to the " private meeting , " had been exactly as stated by Mi * . Clark , let me ask you what has . that to do with the question of Clark ' s efforts to mske Chartism subservient to the middle class movement ? All this cloud of words — " Red Cap , " " Ship-yard , " " Sheffield , " " private meeting , " " private assassination , " . " bloody democracy , " &o . etc ., has been cunningly raised by my opponent to blind you to the true question at issue . That he has shirked . It is his policy ; but a policy too transparent to mislead . Some friends deplore tliis contention . Let those who . do so , bear in mind , that this strife was commenced bv " the platform violence and stupidity" of Thomas Clark . This contest , though an evil for the moment , will be productive of good . To the people generally ifc
can matter little or nothing , whether one or both of the disputants are politically extinguished ; . but the progress or otherwise of the principles at issue , is a matter of the utmost importance . For my part , I anticipate a period of popular delusion , unequalled since the Ilefovm Bill movement ; but , the day of that delusion over , tho misled people will do justice on their deceivers . For myself I have no fear . - My life has been a iSeries of struggles , ' and the present with Mr . Clark and those ivho direct him , will not be the last . Yeavfe before Thomas Clavk -was heard ' of , I made my entrance into public life—not with the " red cap , " but as a worker and sufferer in . the struggle for a Free Press . By years of industry and devotion to the democratic cause , I have won an honourable position ; and , though I am aware that my career has not been free from error , I canproudly say , that I have ever preferred principle to personal considerations ; and , therefore , may' safely defy the utmost malice of my enemies . " . "' ' - lam , ' ' ' . " - . " ' Men oi the " Working Democracy , . ' ; One of your own Order , ' Jan . 31 , 1850 . G . JULIAN HABNEY .
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Tun Snip "Palermo , " on Saturday , from Canton , Captain Campbell , bound for London , wa 3 entirely wrecked off the coast near Dane , five leagues from Boulogne . Tho crew , consisting of eighteen persons and three passengers , were saved . The Phonetic Printing Institution has ceased to exist , its conductor and co-ori « inator with Mr . Pitman—having , it is said , lost £ 7 , 000 by the speculation . A Cut of Majjt Churches—The Cincinnati Christian Herald stntos that Indianapolis , tha capital of Indiana , has a population of 6 , 750 , with seventeen churches , 1 , 800 church members , arid 1 , 500 members of the Sabbath schools , all voluntary . . .- . . ¦
Colleges is tue United States . — There are in the United States 119 colleges , the oldest of which is Harvard University of Cambridge , Massachus r sets , established in 1638 . The next oldest it . Yala College , at New Haven , established in 1700 . The aggregate number of volumes m the libraries of these colleges is 643 , 328 . The library of Harvard University numbers 74 , 000 volumes . . ; FitKnEiticK Douglass says , in his Aorth Star : •—" The now year promises well for the cause of the slaves . Signs already appearing above tho political horison indicate a coming storm . Tho enemies of justice and humanity flag and falter . They see that
; he day of reckoning draws nigh , and fear takea hold upon them . " Twenty-five Livss Lost on tiie Ice in Hanoveb . —The Dutch journals relate the following accident : —Some days since somo of tlio inhabitants of Haaren , in the eastern part of Hanovarian Friesland , amounting to twenty-five , - went on the river Ems with a view to divert themselves by skating . The river at this part is rather broad . They had seavcfely commenced their diversion when a part of the ice gave way , and five of them disappeared th » otherB hastened to their assistance , when they unfortunately met with the same fate . The whole . 0 f the bodies were afterwards recovered , quite dead '
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Feb. 2, 1850, page 5, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1559/page/5/
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