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Northern Star (1837-1852), 8th April 1843, Edition 2 of 4, Page 6, THE DEBATE ON MB. DUNCOMBE S MOTION .

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    • THE DEBATE ON MB. DUNCOMBE S MOTION .
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      ST ^ Pi * t > BJDSHlE . E - £ . SSi 3 . £ S . STAFFORD . Thussdat , Masch SO . ( Before Mr . Jsslics Erskine and a Special Jury ) 1 SEG 15 A r . COOPEB , S 1 CHAB . DS , ASD CAPPDB . j Sir . Justice Esssjse proceeded at nine o ' clock this ! mercit . g to sunvup uris protracted case . He was sorry , | after the patient attention ^ tich the jury had exhibited \ flcrini ; tli 5 icqsiry , thai it ¦ would be Eeccssarj for him to , detain ibsm -while he enl .-iid at leuciij irto the evi- j dence 02 the part of the Cromi and U > e defence ; but ,, although unquestionably a-tch timt tad fceer . lost in j useless ercss-txaminsrion cf xbe witnesses for the prose- < Cntion , he did hope the jury -B-oiud consider tuch a j course -was nathii-g mere than a manifestation of j »? i toKJa ^ e by the i-efendaat Cooper to the ! spite--, of Tarispmeence under "which be "was then j miht ba the

      takii : ^ iiis triaL "Whatever $ resuit , while , 510 hlji conld do other-sdse tLan dt * ply deplore the j di £ tr « 3 -which existed in the Potteries at the fcms these j outrages occurred , on the other hand , do man could j er&nse the tumults and violence which then tooi place * The learned Sergeant , in hia reply on the . part of the j Cro ^ m , had truly observed , in ti . e language of 3 dr . j Currsn * be Lad knewn tnmnlt aud -violence to maks i many ich poor , but he had nearer known it to nmks a pw- man xish- " He ( tbe Isamed Judge ; regretted ' that Its defcndiiit Cooper , in cross-txauiinatinn . fc ^ d throws imputations upon the motivss of Mujur Tench , ! the gallant officer who , in the discharge cf a nucosary ; duty , bsd caused the military to act on the ai ^ ming of the 3 > " 2 of Aucsst : bn » fc . B"Waa glid to fiiscl ,- tbxt s > ub- , I i j I j ! i I '

      Beqa ^ nHy , in his address to the Jury , he , toe oe-{ estiacL . had shown beiter taste , and bad acqaiued the gsiiani tfficer of daing more than vsijjl be considered his duty 02 thai occasion . With , those cireniDEtaTices tfcey { the Jnryj bad n ithir . g 5 Fiarestr te do- Tbe defeicarts -were cba :-gt- < l , » ilh Ul-rers other persona , with having un- j laiFfully and * Eeditiensi ' y conspired ta excite the ; peofli to riots , routs , tc , in breach of the public ; peace , and to excite and prevent tht > due execution of j the Is-w . Now , a conspiracy tias an stternpi on the ; part i-f Dersons to accomplish a certain ohject by unlaw- j ful mexns . The objsft might be perfectly lawful ^ but . if its rromotion "Was attercpted by ill « al me-M , thtn j an unbi-vrfu ! conspiracy "was clearly established . If , as ' 2

      ¦« a tbe « asa in a recant tri&l in snoitsei part of tl » o j country , thsre had beta a count in the incKctmtnt which - onla have sHowcm . fciin to reserve a case for , the O .-art above , he should bfive gladly availtd himself j of tl = ' . course ^ but here he had 30 option , bat was , competed at cec to jp . Te an op ^ nicn upon a point raised j in ti ? indictment Tae resul ; of Lis fxamiiiation c-f , the U-w apen the snbject "w ^ b then , that anj rm-nber of ¦ workpeople fca 3 a perfect lesal right % ¦¦ evinC ^ n ? to coviipt : : -j ^ is 10 raise rbeir "srsgts ; and IT it was c- > mpettnl for them to agTte uut to work for certain wages fiTei ; b > eniplojers , he . jMi . Justice Erskinei « id sol see ^ h ~ it was not eqsiiiy coiop-etcEt lur tbeni to agree ard ctnibinefor any ozh-tlrgui orject . Br m » nothiug in the iaw to render rucb 211 assembly or coiutiinati ' .-n

      Ukt-lL Then , if the obf-sii-mta : ! . tf ths ChiirLer trj » s a li-wful or-JBct , "which , u quest *» Babiy , it vas . and tbt means pnrsnsd -were not of an unlawful character , he did e-jJ a ^ e how , under such circumstancrs , a charge o ! is ilhv-J conspiizcy couirt be supported . Bat it -would be fur tee jury to saj w-hetber or iiot ibe dtf * ndants , in the B " - ¦ =-s they adoptrd f- » r the esLaWisfmiem of t > : e Pcov-t ' j Chfirter , did not Cv . Jispire to brnsj : about thai rasuit r-y incitemfests to ¦ yitltDce and tcmiux ; iriifcti-ei they did net iutena . ty ad-rising a ces « ition of labour , to prodnce discos tent and those hncul * s and ontragt-s Trhicb snecaeded . If they ( the jurys -were of opinion i £ at rbe dtf ^ ndanta intended ii ^ 2 ae £ cic ^ the GvTernment or the Legislature by force an '* laiimidaticn , thtn the-ccsrse in ite iufiictrotnt -was fniJT ita « e out . Tie to

      ¦ L ^ Tr-fd Jndge then proceeded real over apaljz ^ the tvid ^ Dce . Aliudirij to tbs turn-rnt at Mr- B ; igirays jcaimfactory , his Lordshrp ob 8 trv < -d that if the men Weie quietly at tbeir v rS , and -were willing t » C 0 Etirz . r tihdr -work , and a rnob of people in tht- meaner tb- -HitEessss iad describriJ , ir-.-nt , acd by urror or ¥ j fv . ce con ^ peEed tbeis to dts ^ t from -zbt-vt -woik , that meetly -was aa nuiaTrfol mttliEg ; and if thej Wt-re sats ? S » - « l test that -was Tecomnieiidcd fcyC ^ opt-r , the defendant , and "was the result of pivrious coBspira-.-y berirt-: ia them and tbe other defendants , or betwei-n hiia i £ d any other per « oas . then th it wouid sa ^ -sfj fchs diarge upon this iudictuient TheLfcirntd Judge , after going through the evidence -witi great cans and patiexes , concluded hia addresa at tight oViloci in it * STcnins .

      The Jmry rebred for abens £ Te minntes , nn ^ upon their it turn found a Terdict of GuDty asais ^ t all the defeudacts , but recommended the defendant Cappur to mt * e > - 3 dT . s ^ eaDt Talfourd said ha -would take care tbit tbe xeceniiuendation of ths Jury-was attended to ; he thonjflJt he xi-gfct pledge himself thai the defendant Capyur » oaid uot be brought npfor jndgment . Cooper , addressing the Judge , mid the defendant * felt tifceplj indebted to Mb lordship for his kindness and courtesy during the "whole of that protracttd inT 65 t 5 gatioii , and he "was "worthy of the nsme of BrskJae . Tta Jsd ^ e—Ton bad oetter sa y nothing abr-ut me . TTh = « iefeadaiit » axe to be brought up for jaCgmtat ness . term .

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      iM-u-Ljri _ . L « -i- < -j- _ pi-r . 1 11 _ 1- ir ^^^ M^^— -1 r 11 ^ w WAEWICK ASSIZES . CITIL SIDE , SATtrsDAT , Apkii . l ( Before 3 &r . Baron AMerson and a Special Jury ) ( From the Times . J TRIAL OF GEOR&E WHITE . George WTtiie surrendered to asiTtisn indictment for sediti xi ? Ian £ Bage and riotous and unia-viol assembling st BiraiTBga&m in August last Tie bill had b ^ en f onod at the Birmingham Baroo ^ h Stssons on the 22 nd of October last , at "which time the defendant waa in

      custody asder the commitment of the issgistra ' ea . anrt the inilictment "was rerao-ve ^ by txriiorari into tbe Court of Qc—n ' a Bench . On . the £ Sih of October s sonunong had brcH taken cut before a Jad ^ e a : . hambera . the defendant -vras idmitt-ed to bail Lj Mr . Justice Cresrw-11 on tha luth of November , -when recognizances "Were rrrtered into by himself in £ 200 , and four snre-ita in £ 5 » each , that he "wvnld appear and plead to the Indienxsut , and appear on the xevura of the postea in ease fee should be coETict ^ d .

      3 ir , Serjeant s , . HH . L . Q- C , and idr . ¦ Waddi ^ GTOS appeared as c ^ nnsel for tt « CroTfn . The c ^ -fendant underuxit hi 3 o-wn dtitnee unaided . Mt Sergeant Adaxs stated to tbe Jary tbe case on beLalf ^ f the Cro"wn s . t some length , as it appeared by the evidence Enbjoined . He spoke of the fears that exten ?" " » e 1 y prsvailed in tee to-sm and nwjrhb&n'bf .-od . of th- -meeting of the magistrates on this 2 oih . and of their notices by placards and adTertistmrnta in thB public papers of the forbiddauca of such nettings . He aiiuded to tbe state of thJBgs Trhicb ' render ^ it necessary for the magistrates to apply for , and tlie Qo-TEnmtat to "supply , a reinforceHjent of msiitary . In addition to the Draroons osna . ly ouarbered in tbe

      baria = fcs in Birmincoam , a force of Infantry and Horse j Artillery had been procured . Tee Warwickshire . \ Worcestershire , and Staffordshire regiments of cavalry had tten » 1 bo on duty in the neighbourhood ef the town and of the iron and coal districts . T ^ e pensioners 1 too Lai been embodied and drilled , and great num-1 bers of the respectable infeab -tantB b ^ totd in as special i conitabjes . The Laamed Counsel obserred upon the : extrejueJy mischievoua tenaency , ts > ecLjlly in times of ; popular excitement , of such proceedings and conduct i aE thr * iefeEdant stood accused of . Tbe Gentlemen of j tbe Jcry , hs E 3 id , "woaM hear thB evidence , and then pronoanc * Tfbttb ^ r tiis charges , or nuj and -wliich of them , laid in tie iEtiictnunt "were mada out to their ; entire s ^ tMaction . \

      2 At H . 2 > L Griffiths produced the placard affixed on the 19 n by the d >; fenaint las deposed by the -witness John * , jij , the nc « tice of meeting on the 224 sigw&d by O'Xe'ii the no ^ c £ ? by the Mayor and the Mayor and Ma = 5 ^ r ; 3 t « s of tbe 29 ib ( placards a nd ne-yspapersi . tbe def-no-JiifB lstter to Cooper ( proved to be i 1 Ms band"WritiDi by Mr . Adkins , the G-jTeroor : l the Wur ^ ick prisoi : } aprintof tbe Queen ' s proclamation is * ntd on the l :-i-h , and a print of the Qatin ' a prociaiuit ^ un of the 12 a of 3 > rce 2 ibe :, 1838 Ti =- following copit-s of the notices j'sned by tbe 3 I = jor and Magistrates -were put in and read . —

      " CAUTION . " Pnblis-oSica , Borough of Bir ^ iDgham , August 20 , 1 S 42 . " "R'brress infonnstioa has been rece ' ved that meeting !> i"fs be ? n btid in -rerions ¦ parts of the feiiTgdom of lai ^« h > ai £ s af xr ^ n . ¦ * $ ><* have pmceedr d fr < .= ni place to pl *^« - - > r u :. seasonable hours , and that t-.. j-j , i and sedi , tiocs i nKusge ba ? bees addrers-rd to ih . in , and it has j b- ^ i- ¦ pr ^ scEte ^ tiai sneb . nitetirLs art intended to be hd - ¦• iun this bor' . n ^ h : r * ice is btri-by ipven , that j EO s-a-b mettinis - «? iU be permitted to assciiible , and ! caution is at tbe ams time siren to all' -well topoBtrd ! peisa- 5 not to attend or join ai--y sach me-, tines . Ifotire ' is al "~ ,-ivsn , that ill necessary measures- * iil be adopted to jr-v-nt tile assemblLng of any such mettiogs , bo as : effectually to protect the pnblic peace' and pre-yent the i disurbance thereof . " Samczl Beals , Mayor /' " CAUTION .

      " Borough of Birmingham , August 2 P , 1842 ! * ' We , ttie xindtragned , magistraias acting for the borough of Birmingbam , haring recaiTed Information of meetings in this neighbourhood , and hating this day witnessed the attempt made bj certain indlfiduls to call together and address a bod ; of persona -arithin . the laid borough , under the present state of disturbance mnlortanalely coasting in other parts ol England , deem it to be oni dnty to make known to the publio in genealthat , after . tte publication of hex Majesty's proclamation , all assemblies ef persons in considerable numbers hawjg a manifest tendency to endanger the public , peye , and t&flrtte the fears of her Majestj' 3 peaceable » ubjec € s " are i ^ 5 *^ j "wbatera may be their avowed object , and "wKefeTer held , notwiaistanding they maj not at the time lie , attended "with open violence ; and -we declare oni ~ firm intention to prevent the same , and to hubject any individuals Tfbo may be found assisting at iffwjh - assemblages tc tee ptraltits ef ths law . « And "we further caution all "Well iispoBBd persona from iormnem , « bang present ai , any sneb meetirgs

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      processions , &O-, as they will mercDy bring themaclves into peril and incur the consequences of any measures that may he adopted for the apprehension of the ill-dispesed , and the prsservation ot the publio peacB . " ( Signed by the Mayor and nine other Magistrates . ) Mr . S . Beale sworn . —Was the Mayor of Birmingham in Angnst last . There jwas great excitement prevailing in the town , and there was a great influx of strangers , many of them colliers . There -were maDy Chartist meetings held . Heard of the meeting ef the 13 ih ol August The magistrates met , and gave directions to Mr . Burgess , tht Commissioner of Police , There were meetings , on the 16 th and 17 th . They began about sis o ' clock in the evening and ended about dark . They were held at Duddeston-row , There were about 1 . 000 people , working men . Between the 16 th and the 28 th the exciteBiknt greatly increased . On the 26 th the

      | | ; i&agistiates met again , and issued the placard . There were at this time placards calling a meeting for the 22 nd . O ' Nei ' . rs plaeard came out first , or at least he saw it first . Feaia extensively prevailed in the town . Ths notices were issued and posted by tbe authority of the magistrates , and special constables sworn in . Tbe magistrates applied for and obtained additional military assistance . There -were large bodies assembled in various parts of the town on the 22 nd , 23 rd , 24 th , and 25 tb ; but the magistrates and police prevented any regular meeting . Business was during tbe whole of tbe time , in a great measure , suspended . The inhabitants W 6 re alarmed , and the peace of the town was greatly endangered . The defendant -was apprehended early in the morning ol tbe 26 ; h , and committed tbe same day , after which no further meeting was attempted , and order w : is restored .

      It -xas then F ° Ved that during the week preceding tbe one in which the defendant was apprehended there was a great ii flux of colliers into Birmingham , who ¦ were spread all over the town , and there was very great disturbarce . Joseph Johnson—Saw the defendant on the 19 th of Angusi fix a placard , corresponding "with the one produced , on a wall by th » Green Man public-house , in Moor-strest , Birmingham . Bead it at the time and left it there . It appeared to attract attention . Had no doubt , the placard he saw was in the same words as that now produced . The placard was then put in and rsafi , and was as follows : — " Chartists—The men of the north have struck werk ! The people are being murdered J Attend at Duddeston-row to-night ! Come in your thousands 1 "

      There was no printer's name upon . it . "Wituesses were then called , who proved the uttering of the words at the meeting of tbe 15 th of August , as lai-1 in Avs first count of the indictment . Sirah Mann—Was at amerting in Daddeston-row on the 1 & h of Anxust , abont seven o ' clock . There were eW bt or iiic * hundred persons present . The defendant spoks of tbf Qieen s proclamation , and said tb-.-re v-aa one at tt-e tsme of the Bnll-ring concern , &c . Sie then piuvcd the uttering of the words as laid in tha secoud ctunt of the inaiciment . There -was a policeman before brr , and many of tht people cried out that he was a spy , and said , " Stone him ;'" Fet « h him out of tbe ujoV &c . There was a great disturbance , and she wasflishxened aud went home . of

      Ebentz . * r P ^ rtlock—Saw a crowd persons the 22 nd , coming olong Summer-lane Went with hia brother into a public-bouse thwe . White , the defendant , came , and there -were thousands of j > eojc > le . Tbe defendant addressed them , and said they had been misled by 0 N'eili and Sturge"s party , who had been negotiating with the police . He said that he had called a meetirg for the following nlsbt , h . Daddeston-row , and he would hold bis meeting force to force , if they would do as he did . The people entered , and said " We will" He said , " You will come prepared to meet the police ; you "will bring the sticks in your jacket-pockets , and it should be force to force , and all the policemen in BirlEJEEham and England shouldn't disperse them . " There was a man drttstd as a Quaker , -who said be bad brought four hundred colliers into the town ! o Euppe-rt the meeting , and O'Neill and Stnrge had deserved them . A . placard , as subjoined , had been , on the 19 th , posted ar ? ut tee town and neighbourhood : —

      " Men of Birmingham , —A crisis is now come—Britain and Ireland stb aroused—the nation's voice declares , in loudest tones , that the noble straggle must now be made . The days of tyranny are numbered . Shall Birnxingbam , once tbe Polar star of liberty , now slumber ? No . Awake . ' Arise ! Stand forward in the nation ' s nu . riu battle , and declare that now our country shall be free . " A great meeting will be held on Monday , Aug 22 nd , at ten o ' clock , on a piece of ground in Summer-lane , ntar the Atylnm , to memorialize tae Queen , and to consider what BiraiDgbam shall do in the present awful state of the country . Influential men , of all shades of democratic sentiment , and from various parts of the couutty , will attend and give tbeir advice on this important subject

      " By order of tbe public meeting held on " Thursday , Aug . 18 . in the " Christian Chartist Church , NewhaH-sireet , " Abthuk . O'Neill , Secretary . " Michael Daly , late a Sergeant of the Birmingham police , and now a sub-in * p ? ctor of the Staffordshire force , having given in evidence tbe words uttered at tbe meeting on the 151 b of August , as laid in the first const in tbe indictment , deposed to the foots that tbe defendant on that occasion told the people to conduct themselves in a peaceable manner , for all the authorities wanted was an opportunity of bludgeoning them and cutting them up , and that ths people were quiet . GKsorge Philip Tandy , a policeman , also swore te the u- ' ta-ance of tbe " angus ^ e on the 15 th , as laid in the first count of the indictment .

      Isaac Cottrill having , on the 26 th of August , apprehended Cooper ( the well-known Chartist ) searched him ami found upon his person a letter ( proved by the keeper of the Warwick gaol to be in the dtfendont ' s handwriting . ; The letter was then put in and read , and was as follows : — *• Birmingham , Aug . 24 , 1842 . " "We are in a tremendous state of ezcitment here ; military , pensioners , police , special constables , cannon , and God knows what are being called into requisition . Scurije and O'Neill sold us on Monday and broke up a meeting which they called in order to defeat ours of the f _> i . owing day . Cooper , there never was greater rascals than they have proved themselves ( see the Star of Saturday . ) We held our meetings in defiance of proclamations , exhortations , and threats from the magistrates ; they covered Duddeston-row with police , but to

      we ^ rtiered the people follow us , and held a meeting of 40 000 . where we carried the Charter amidst thundering cheers . 1 forgot to tell yon that ay boose has been bcrrf'Undcd with police these two nights , and that a warrant has been issued for my apprehension . 1 have , nevertheless , marched with the ' sovereign people * and addressed them in defiance of tbeir warrant . We shall aieet again te-night and ' nomistake . ' ' There was some Ugly work last night—Hiy bodj-gnard chucked a raw lobster into tbe canal , and the town has been paraded by soldiers , our lads cheering and marching with them like trumps . 1 would rather than ^ 10 you were here now to sing Spread tbe Charter . * I expect to be landed in Warwick gaol before Saturday ; but , dear Cooper , no matter what befalls me , I have made up my mind to Eteno by our glorious motto , * The Peoples Charter and no surrender . * " Yonr democratic brother .

      " QE 0 B . GE White . "We are petting on gloriously here—O'Neill and Sturge have damned themselves . " To Mr . Thomas Cooper , Jfo . 11 , Church Gate , Leicester . " Tfiere wss a meeting intended for the 24 th , but the police interfered and prevented it ; and the defendant headed 4 , 000 or 5 , 000 persons , and took them to Tart-ly Fields , in the county of Worcester , three cr f . 'Ur mflcB from Birmingham ; aad the mob returned p -r . er dusk riotously and tnuinltuonsly , to the great of and

      a ^ arm peaceable or derly people . There was a meeting on the 25 : h , but that was thesnbject of another m lictment . At the meeting of tbe 22 nd , wfcich was in the iDuraing , several thousands assembled jd tbe neighbourhood of the asylum , in Siunmer-lane . The arrangements of lae j > . lice then prevented any regular proceedings of the mob ; and the police communicated with Sturge and O'Neill , who told the people to go home , and r : » : act in violation of the orders cf the magistrates . " \ 31- S ; nrge , on this occasion , bagged of the people to GiFperse , and they bfgan to do so , but were met by the defendant , who reunited acd addressed them .

      Olfeer genera ] evidence was used , of the carrying of banners by tbe mob , of the crowds collected , and of the general hootirg at the police , the noise , tumult , and great confusion , and consequent alarm that were created , and of the facts that people closed their shutters from apprehension , and that tbe ordinary business of men "was to Bome extent suspended . This was the case presented on the part of the Crown . The defendant then ( it being neariy five o ' clock , and the trial having commenced at about eleven ) applied to the Learned Judge for an adjournment of the case on the atfeged grounds that be was too much exhausted and not well enough then to conduct bis defence as efficiently as he might do and desired , and that several of his -witnesses , "whote testimony he deemed to be of importance to him , had been prevented from as yet arriving nt Warwick .

      The learned and humane Jndge responded , that he was leady to grant the defendant any indulgence he could . He aaid that he had observed , in thedefaadantfa conduct of hit cua hitherto , no desire Texa-Uoualy , or with-wrong motive * , to protract tin duration of the triaL and he -was quite willing to believe that the flrffmflant bad no such Intention . He then very mildly said , " I -win accede to your request , and grant you the indulgence you seek , postponing your bearing until Monday . ^ ; The defendant—I humbly thank your Lordship .

      Mr . Baron AxosssoM ^ -Gcntlemen of tbe jury , I hope and believe that it is not necessary to caution you , not in the ceurseof to-morrow , Sunday , or between thiB and . Monday morning , to communicate witb any other parson than one of yourselves upon the subject of this triaL At present you have beard , yon tnow , only

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      one bide , aud tbe otner remains to be told . You understand me , gentlemen . Tbe Defendant—I have perfect confidence in you , gentlemen of tbe jury , and seek to put no further restraint upon you tban your own consciences may dictate to be proper and right The Court then adjourned to Monday morning , at nln « o ' cloct .

      Monday , Apkil 3 . At nine o clock this morning George White , the Chartist , in a tone of uprightness and injured innocence , oommenced his defence . He spoke in an Irish brogne , and began by observing upoa the character of the witnesses brought ag&inst him , and said , tbitsurel y the jury ooulo not think of convicting upon tbe evidence of such blackguards as those policemen , " of that fine Mr . Tandy and the rascally spy Daly . " Ho complained of the spy system , and of the people being hunted down by such follows . Bad man , as the Learned Serjeant said he was , he had entertained the blackguard Daly at his table in his private house , where he had been prying into his private thoughts , and then came into the

      witnessbox telling point blank lies againBt him . He had insinuated himself into the good graces of the defendant , as a privato individual , seeking to have the gun trade taught him , and for these honest services Mr . Commissioner Burgess had made him a sergeant . He didn't chink on Sat rday night that he should have been this morning called upon to answer these trumpery charges , for he had then Been the " learned counsel looking quite ugly at one another" on the breaking down of their witnesses , and thought that they were going to isive it up . Was he to be dragged fr'im hits borne aud his wife and child upon the evidence of Mich a set ol blackguards as they had seen , the vrry rakings and Bcum of Birmingham , who had beenthe companions of Mr . Griffiths ( tho

      attorney Jor the Crown ) for months ? He thought that Mr . Griffhhs would ero this have been tired of the dirty work in which he was engaged . As to the proof of alarm having been caused , beyond that of an old woman who sold cabbages having put up her shutters , there was none . The meetiugs had been betwetn the hours of six and half-past 8 in the evening , and sot in the night time , according to the evidence of these vile blackguards , and it was more desirable to make a population intelligent by lecturing on summer evenings than to encourage people to sot in public houses . There was nothing that ho saw againdt him to answer , except the tomfoolery sentence mentioned by Portlock . " Bring them in your jacket pockets . " How could they bring the

      policemen in tbeir jacket pockets 1—and it was to the policemen that the word " thtm" was by this witness made 10 refer , tie bad been opposed to tbe colliers coining into the town , and he thought that the Anti-Corn Law League had not bten benefiting the working classes . He had had nothing to do with their strikes , but had told the people that if friend Sturge found them tbe money for the support of themselves aud their wives and families , they might strike as soon as they pleased . He complained of the great expenses that he had been forced to incur in having beta forced to appeal to the Court , of Queen ' s Bench to be admitted to bail , previously to which he had beeu detained in prison for eleven weeks—shameful it -was . He bad opposed Sturge and all of that

      party , and if he was a rogue , be was an open , and not a sly , cunning , hypocritical rogue . It it was to err , to be a friend of the whole family of man , then had be erred , and not else . There had been DO more disturbance than there would have been after a dog with a kettle tied to his tail , and all the children in Birmingham would willingly subscribe a halfpenny a piece for such a spree next week , and for this cause there had beeu all the police in hundreds , drawn up rank and file , and the military and all that smff , and tbe police had been engaged in running after a few little boys who threw pebbles at one another . The throwing stones must have been done with great care , for nobody appeared to have bfien hit . There was Mr . Spooner , one of the magistrates ,

      who committed him , be saw on the bench laughing , and it wa ? a mighty good j <> k « , he dare say , 10 cry out * ' there ' s a Charust , pop him in Warwick flaol , " but it was no joke to him , the fun of the thing was all one side . He knew that be stood in the front rank of Chartism . " 1 am a Chartist , " ho said , but were people to be bullied and frightened out of the avowal of what they thought light \ He ar « ued that the Charter was nothing new , and that the very word u poU ' j . meant nothing short or universal suffrage . He was before the . magistrates , it was true , and there was some chatter about sacks and umbrellas , bnt all that was in evidence was , there was a lot of little lads running about the street who frightened all tbe police . When before the magistrates be lost

      his silk pocket handkerchief , by the way , and some body pocketed the affront as he did . There was not a greater set of scoundrels and known thieves than the Birmingham police . They had been turned out of various other towns , and prowled about the streets prying into the actions of the people . Ho had nothing whatever to do with the Bull-ring affair , which was four or five years ago . He came from Leeds to Birmingham two years ago last February . He had brought a great number of witnesses at a very heavy expense into the town , but he did not know that he should call them to meet this paltry trumpery that was talked of . It would be a loss of time . Every count in the indictment was knocked up without ahem , and if the conductors of the

      prosecutioii were determined to keep them , the gentleman of the jury , he was not . He said that there was nothing against him , and , as the case bad not been proved , he called upon them now as honest men , and men who had famihes cf their own , to pronounce him not guilty of the crime that was alleged against him . His conduct bad been such that be had bad no ncsd to shrink into holes and corners , as the witnesses for the prosecution had been compelled to do , and he had no doubt but that he should walk out of that room honourably acquitted . He trusted that the state of things would yet be changed , aud that , those who were pauptrs now would become enabled to

      earn a competency , and to be honest customers in the purchase of the manufactures of tbe rich , to their advantage , and tbe comfort of themselves , and then that these " bine-coated fat pigs , * ' who were living in idlenes-s upon the " vitals" of hone 3 t men would be dispersed and sent about their business . He would not make a long defence ; he would not call his witnesses ; he would not keep the Learned Judge , the gentleman of the jury , and the counsel waiting there . There was auother indictment against him , and he hoped and trusted that they would get rid of that also in the course of the day . What was he charged with , but that he was a Chartist , which was no crime at all !

      Mr . Serjeant Adams—My Lord , as counsel for the Crown in the case , I don ' t think it necessary to exercise my right of reply . Mr . Baron Alderson . —Very well , you have a perfect right to do so if you please . That is a matter only for your own consideration . 41 r . Sarjeant Adams was satisfied , with tho leaving the cabe as it stood wnhout replying . Mr . Baron Aldeeson then proceeded to sum up . He said that there waa no evidence to support the count for riot , and thai the jury should confine their attention to those for tho different seditious language charged to have been uttered on the three ocoasions of the 15 th , lSih , and * 22 ad of August , and that of the unlawful assembling . Inorder to convict of the former

      respectively they must be satisfied that the words were used , that they bore the meaning charged , and that they were used with the intent charged . Ad unlawful assembling consisted not in that which was calculated to alarm merely timid women and children and foolish men , but in what reasonably tended to excite alarm in persons of ordinary mind and understanding , and to interrupt them in the reasonable enjojment of th&ir own comforts . If the purpose had been by tbe course alleged to change the Iaw 3 , he was not prepared to say that it was not an overt act of high treason , and this was a warning , which in no unfriendly 6 pirit he meant to give on this occasion . People had a light to indulge their own opinions , and , by lawful means , to promote them , though he

      himself and the gentlemen of the jury mSght differ from them . It was the privilege of Englishmen . It was the improper means , bv force and threats , and not the ohj » ct , which was complained of . The tiefi-ndant baa observed upon a particular measure as having been carried by force ; but he , ( the Learned Judge ) a ^ to that , said that it was a crime , if it ever was done , to carry that measure by force . His Lordship then reaa the words contained in the first count of the indictment . The object seemed to be to obtain -wnat the deferdant called tho Charter . There was no pretence for saying that tho meeting had been in the dark hours of the night . Tfte defendaut appeared to have concluded with an exhortation to peace and trai . qaili-y . It was for the jury to say ,

      how far the import ot ihe language might have been varied by the context and the rest of the speech , which they had not before them . He had felt it to be his duty , in a case at Derby , to suggest possible contexts , making the matter of a less guilty , or more innocent nature . Here it did not occur to him how to do so , bat he enjoined the jury to take it into their consideration whatever of this nature might fairly and reasonably be suggested by their own minds . His Lordship then proceeded to read the evidence . As to the excited state of the people at the time , he observed that what might not be dangerous at one time , and under one state ofcircumstances , might be so in the extreme at another , and under another state of circumstances . It might ba Bafe and not dangerous to introduce a red bpt poker into

      a grate full of ooalfl , whereas it might be dangerous and unsafe to introduce it into one full of guapowder or other explosive material . It appeared that a . t the meeting not many of the strangers in the town bad been observed present . The notice of the magistrates was a rery judicious and proper proclamation to have been put forth at , that time , forbidding meetings of this description . The Queen ' s proclamation had been extensively posted in the town aa well as in other parts of the kingdom , and it contained an exhortation to the magistrates to be vigilant and prompt . The placard that had been issued by O'Niell the defendant was not responsible for , and he must say that this was by far the most outrageous that bad been produced . That about the" moral battle" was a piece of fudge that they alwaja put in .

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      It was , however , only evidence in this case as showing the state of popular excitement at the time . The people had been peaceable . This ciroumstance was ambiguous , because it did not appear whether they were so because they were so minded , or because of the steps taken by the authorities . The meeting in Summer-row had been after the posting of O'NielFs placard . At the meeting on the 15 th , in Duddeston-row , the language waa certainly very imprudent , if used . With regard to the spies , what could be more irrational than for the policemen to be sent in their uniforms for the purpose of noting what was said ! They went for such purpose in plain clothes of course . It wasn ' t a question whether the jury morally approved of the conduct of these

      policemen , but whether they believed the acts spoken to by them to have been done as they stated . The evidence was admissible , though it might come from an impure and a tainted source , as was the every day practice as to accomplices . His Lordship remarked upon the supposed intention to call off in some degree the military from the north , and then proceeded to read the words alleged to have been used at the meeting of the 19 ; h , and in allusion to those about tho former dreadful insurrection and burning at tho Bull ring observed , "What was this for but 10 set the people to act , against the Government and the laws V He then read and remarked on the placard which the defendant had been seen to affix upon the wall . Aa to tho prospects that wore held out to the people

      assembled , it was highly mischievous to hold out anything of the sort . " The poor shall never cease out of the land , " the Bible said , and it must bo bo ; it evor was a world of trials—all had their trials—aud the greater part of the ills which those who gathered round tho defendant complained of were such aa Kings and Lords couldn ' t create and couldn ' t cure . There must always be poor people , and the existence of the poer would be the blessing of tho rich , if , as he could wish , all did their duty as some did . The happiness and good of the poor depended mainly upon themselves and tbeir own conduct , and the rich should set them the example . In considering the language of the 19 th , the terms of the preliminary placard were to bo noticed , but he again

      observed , that it was fair to give the defendant tho benefit of any ingenious suggestion as to the context , because they did not know what it was , but none occurred to him . His Lordship then read and observed upon the words used at the meeting of the 22 ud . As to those of " Bring them in your jacket pockets , " they wore nonsense , taken literally as deposed to , but it was for the jury to consider and determine what their true import was . Then as to the words , " Force to force , " what could they mean else than setting the people to resist the authorities ! There , then , were the infitructions for a placard given to the printer by the defendant . The printer thought that some of tho words were too strong , and refused to print them , and Bom » were struck out , which , though

      legible enough , they would put out of their consiucration . The defendant was to be responsible only for what he had actually adopted . What remained called upon the people in two large characters , " To work no more , " and spoke of their " delivery from the hellish tyranny that blasted the hopes and the prospects ot the peopK" Now , those to whom he referred were no more the people than were " the three taiiors of Tooley-street . " The defendant was a man of acutertess aud understanding , aud , one would think , muat have seen and known the operation of these meetings at such a time . The people , in giving up the medium that had beou intewded ( Sturge ' s and O'Neill ' e ) had acted in accordance with the law , and upon tho principle that the better part of valour was discretion , and he wished that the defendant had given them up too . One of the policemen had very properly declined to answer the question put to him

      "Whether ho wasn ' t the worst person in all Birmingham V and the Learned Judge thought that it had not been judicious iu the defendant to cast aspersions upon all the witnesses for tho proi-ecut iou , without proving anything again-t any otio of them . If they wore all of such very bad character , it was very unfortunate . With the defendant ' s letter to Cooper , w ! ich ho read , the prosecution closed . Was it . reasonable that . anybody should have the power to say of himself what therein appeared about his body guard , and so on , and the throwing the raw lobster into the canal ! Who was he that ho was to have a body-guard ? The question was , whether they wore . satisfied that he uttered the worda with the intent imputed , &c . If they thought so they would convict him . If they could explain it in any way coap ' wtently with his innocence , he besought tnem to give him the benefit of it .

      The jury retired , and in a few minutes returned wiih a verdict of Guilty , upon th « first three cunts . Sentence will be pronounced in the Court ol Queen s Bench next term .

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      I . i the House of Commons , on Tuesday , in last week , after presentation of petitions on various subjects , and some conversation on foreign matters , Mr . T . S . DTJNCOMBE rose to move— "That a Select Committee be appointed , to inquire into the grievances complained of , and tbe allegations contained In tbe petitions of George White , of Birmingham ;—Robert Brook , of Todmorden ;—James Leech , of Manchester ;— J- G- Harnoy . of Sheffield;—Jonathan Brown and nine others , prisoners in Southwell House of Correction ;—R . T . Morrison , chairman of a publio meeting at Nottingham ;—John Skevington , of Loughborough ;—Jam ? s Arthur , of Carlisle;—John Allinson ,

      of Stockport;—Samuel Rob-nson ;—of Stoke-upon-Trent;—Jamus Mitchell , of Soutbport ;<* -Samuel Crowther , of Halifax ;—William CNipillan , chaiuian of a public meeting at South Shields : —tbe Committee to report their opinion , with the evidence , to tbe House . " He said that her Majesty had been graciously pleased , in her speech from the throne , to express her concern that the public peace bad been most seriously d&tufbed during tbe l ^ st year in tbe manufacturing districts : and h <> r Majesty had also been pleased to observe that the ordinary laws of the lnnJ bad been sufficient for tho suppression of those dirturbancea . He believed that the House fully concurred in these views ; but be believed also , that if tbe House bad been in possession of the circumstances which he was now about

      to lay before them , they would not have expressed themselves aa they did in their address in answer to that speech . He did not wish it to be understood that he intended to ltnputo to the government the slightest desire to mislead her Majesty , that House , or the country : be believed that the government bad beeu themselves misled , and that up to the present hour they wore unaware of the illegal transactions which had taken place . Ht > did not mean to say that the ordinary law was not sufficient . It was not understood that the government had applied to Parliament for any extraordinary powers , such as a suspension of tbe Habeas Corpus Act , or of tbe other acts passed in 1819 and 1820 ; but he appeared there to say that something more than the ordinary law had been put in force—that

      the magistrates of England had administered something more than the law , and that they had administered it with partiality , cruelty , and oppression . He was aware that be was not now about to address an impartial or an unprejudiced tribunal ; for look whichever way he would , he Baw nothing but justices of the peace—( hear , and laughter)—tho great unpaid—ornamenting every btlnch of that House . He was aware of tho risk he ran , of the hornet ' s nest he was bringing about his ears , by the statements which he was about to make ; but he bad a duty to perform , and he should net shrink from its performance let him please or offend whom he might . ( Hear , hear , hear . ) His motion waj not brought forward with any party views or fetilings whatever , and he trusted that if he should

      be able to make out a sufficient prima fade case for the inquiry lor which he asked , there was such a sense of justice in that House that no santimeuta of false delicacy would induce any man , or any body of men , in that House to shrink from tbe duty which they owed to the people—( hear , hear . ) He had presented some petitions to that House which he proposed to refer to a select committee , in order that the committee might report tbeir opinion an the truth of tho allegations in those petitions ; and it would be necessary , if not to refer ty the whole of the petitions , to refer to most of them . The first petition related to what might be called the origin of the disturbances it was a petition wbich had proceeded from a meeting held by the inhabitants of South Shields . He had presented it to

      the House on the 3 rd of > laich , and be had siuce then received various communications respecting it from the manufacturing districts . The petitioners prayed that House to institute an inquiry into tbe origin of those disturbances , and they certainiy rtid so in no very qualified terms . The committee of that House who had ordered it to be printed had caused to be txpuuged from it certain words which applied to tbe conduct of individuals . The petitioners expressed their regret at tbe disturbances which bad taken place ; they stated that they did not attribute them altogether to tbe distressed state of the people , but they considered that the causes of the late outbreak were mainly owing to the inflammatory and revolutionary tendenoy of the spedcb . es of the Anti-Corn-Law League —( cheers

      from the Ministerial benches . ) They stated that whilst their friouda were Buffering imprisonment , expatriation , dec , those who were the causes of the disturbances were at liberty , and they asked the Honse to institute a strict and scrutinizing investigation into the causes of the late outbreak . The Hon . Speaker then ran over tbe principal incidents of the beginning of the strike first in Staffordshire and tbeu in Lancashire , -which being already familiar to our readers we omit Speaking ef the meeting at Man-Chester , on the 9 th . of August , in Granby-row Fields , to which the Ashton men were escorted by Mr . Maude

      and the Common Clerk , b « said , that meeting was addressed by & very intelligent man named Doyle , a , Chutist , In the presence of the stipendiary magistrate and the common clerk ; in the course of bis address Doyle said that there conld be no doubt of the meeting being a lawful one , the stipendiary magistrate being present , and that no one could after wards object to anything not being done in a lawful manner as they were then acting . Tbe consequence was , that every one was Batis&ed there was a aearee of sanction given to these proceedings . The crowd soon separated , and proceeded to pay the visits they intended to pay before they eot « red Manchester , and invited the different mills

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      to tarn out . At tne end of throe days hardly a mill was at work at Manchester . It appeared that this outbreak was not got up for the purpose of carrying any public measure ;; but after this time delegates wore cboBen and met , and nearly all those individuals who turned but declared for what Was called the Charter . With respect to ] this demand for the Charter , or political equality , he would only aay that these people were quite as well entitled as any other class to demand wbat they conceived to be their political rights . On the fourteenth of Augu . it , things had tak » n a very different torn from what was expected , and from that moment a degree of severity—a degree of oppression and unconstitutional proceedings of the most disgraceful kind were resorted to on the part of the

      magistrates towards those individuals who had engaged in the turn-out A proclamation wa » issued by the magistrates , as he had been informed , in which protection was promised to life and property , and in which it was stated that those who resisted the turn out aud continued to -work should receive ample protection ; and , if he was correctly informed—and the matte * could bo easily investigated by the committee , if it Bhould be granted—some of these miHowners who bad seen tbe proclamation , and had therefore resisted the mob in their attempt to enforce the turn-out , were blamed by these magistrates for resisting tbe mob . — ( Hear , hear . ) Now , -what was the state of the country bfetwaen Coins and Burnley at this time ; and what Was the ooaduct ot some of the magistrates and

      millowners with respect to the turn-out ? He had received a communication on this subject from a pvrson of tbe name of Beesley , who resided at Accrington . " On tho 16 th of August tbe crowd from Burnley demanded admission into Colne , and proniisdd Mr . Folds" ( magistrate of Colne ) that no property should be destroyed , upon which be ordered the soldiers to open out , aud the town was banded over to a Chartist of the name of Mooney , and also gave him £ 1 out ef his owp poefcet , upon the understanding that life aud property should be kept inviolate . Now , if the late outbreak had ; not been concocted by other * than the working classes , would this dispenser of justice have given tbe town into the bands of the people , and with it money but of his own pocket , when be bad a

      sufficient force jto keep them back ? I have received from B'icup , information respecting tbe conduct of same of the manufacturers i& tbat neighbourhood . Mi . Broofes , of Sunnyeide , I believe the son of the alderman ( this infurination is from men who were there , and are ready to make oath upon it ) , said to them , when the people went to stop his works , ' that they were taking the right plan ; that by such means they would be able to compel the Government to do something for tnem , and by no other means . ' He also went round his worVts , and ] showed them his boilers , whilst they drove in the plugs . He gave them every encouragement , and told { them wbtre the other print-shops were in they neighbourhood , and the people proceeded from hii works to stop the others ; he also gave them

      something to eat . -Mr . George Hamilton gave them food when they stopped his mill ; this geutieman lives at lrwell-terrace , nnar B ^ cup , Lancashire . Mr . Whitehead gave them ; bread , butter , ham , and chet-se , wheu they stopped his works . Mr . Ackroyd , Bscup , gave ti > em , when they stopped his mill , both food and money . With 1 respect to Mr . Folds , when in the police-office aft * r my arrest , I heard the superintendent of tbe police say that Mooney could not he arrested ; tbat the magistrate bad acted rather injudiciously ; that they had given Mooney the power to stop the mills ; and that be had done so under the sanction of the magistrates . This I can ' j&ffirm . '" Such proceedings would certainiy lead any one to suppose that th millowers and tbe magistrates did not object to the mills being stopped ; but the moment those persons

      declared in favour of certain political rights , a very difft-rent course' was pnrsuert . from what hart hitherto been followed . , On the 11 th of August , he believed the magistrates first assembled at the Town-hall respecting this movement , land they sent for Sir C . Shaw . That officer thought it to be his duty to give in a list of tbe names of tfeose parties whom he considered to be the most dangerous ugitators of political questions in the t < wo of Manchester ; upon receiving which , some of the magistrates present stated that they knuw that theae were tbe persons who had caused thB late disturbances and had originated tbe outrages which had taken place . Upon which , as he ( Air . Duncombe ) bad been informed , Sir C Shaw said that this was not the case , for that he knew tbat the persons who originated the turn-out and the disturbances were the hired advocates of the

      Corn-Law League —( loud cries of "hear , bear , " from the ministerial benches . ) This was also one of tbe allegations in tbe petition which he had presented from South Shields , and if the allegation was capable of being disproved , tbe committee would be a very proper tribunal tot that purpose . The proceedings , however , which tfien took pluce towards the working classes were of the most unjust nature , and the petitioners were perfectly right in saying , tbat punishment Bhould not be allowed to fall on the heads of those individuals who bad received some encouragement , but Upon the originators and promoters of these disturbances . But what was the conduct which tbose magistrates of Manchester pursued towards those who were supposed to be guilty of wbat he supposed he

      must call political offences ? On this paint he would refer to the first petition which be had presented , from James Leach , bookseller and statibner , of 40 . Oakstreet , Manchester . It appeared that it was intended by himself and other delegates to hold a public meeting on tbe 16 th of August , in commemoration of the memory or Mr . Hunt , for that was the anniversary of the day known by the . name of the Peterloo-day . The petition commenced thus : — " That your petitioner was arrested on the \ 17 tb day of August , 1842 , on a charge of sedition aud conspiracy , and after being confined in a dark , dirty , anddamp cell from Wednesday till Friday , was then , for the first time , brought up before the magistrates , Messrs . Foster and Maude ; and , after an examination , was remanded till Tuesday , Mr . Beswick ,

      superintendent of the Manchester police , stating by that time he should be prepare ! with his witnesses . " Now he would ask the Honourable and Learned Attorney-General whether he ( Mr . Duucomhe ) was not correct in designating this imprisonment of the petitioner , without examination , from Wednesday to the following Tuesday , an illegal transaction on the part of the magistrates ? The law was , that , when a man was arrested , he should be carried before a magistrate as soon as possible ^ but it appeared that this petitioner was arrested on the Wednesday , and was not carried before a magistrate at all until the Friday , although there waa a magistrate sitting up stairs in the place where he was qonflied . It appeared that when . Mr . Leach was carried before the magistrates , -Messrs .

      Maadeand Foster , they did not take the trouble to . inquire into the cajae , but remanded him , without examination , to the following Tuesday : this , he contended , was an illegal proceeding , and he should like to see the lawyer who would say that it was not so . The petitioner proceeded to Bay , " That good and substantial bai was offered , but was refused , on the ground that tbe offonce was j of so heinous a nature tbat no tail could be accepted . * ' He begged to remind the Hiuse , that the offence for wbich Mr . Leach was arrested was , that a placard was posted at his door in which tho people were called upon to declare for the Charter . ' That your petitioner then , with thirteen others , was confined in a very narrow cell , wbare there was scarcely room for two persons to pass each other , and where

      the stench arising from a privy at one end of it , along with the disagieeableneaa of so many being confined together in so email a space , rendered it most intolerable and disgusting , j That at night your petitioner , With three others , Mr . Charles Turner , Mr . Tinker , and Mr Siddons , were locked up in a cell two yards and a half by two , in which there wtre two beds , two feet and a half each In breadth ; one of these cells are usually allowed for two prisoners , though they be felons . The beds Were swarming i with vermin , and the narrowness of them rendered it impossible for your petitioner , with the other prisoners , to take off their clothes . The consequences -was , that your petitioner , with the othtr prisoners , never undressed for thirteen nights . '' It arw peared that the j petitioner , as well as those contined

      with him , were remanded for thirteen days , because the superintendent of police thought proper to teil the Magistrates that if they were remanded , he should be enabled to produce evidence against them at a future day . At the same time it was clear that this man knew tbat there was no evidence , and that he should not be able to bring forward any evidence t , howing criminality on the part of these persons . The fact was . that this was done to prevent these persons being set at liberty , and they were thus confined in this dis-raceful manner in defiance of the Habeas Corpus Act , which , notwithstanding the boa&fc of the government tbat the ordinary law had proved sufficient in their hands , had been virtual y BUspeDded j by the magistrates in these disti icts . That 01 Sunday , your petitioner , with thirteen others

      were paraded in the prison-yard before Sir Ch 3 rlea Shaw , Inspector Irvin , MacMullen , and others * of the Manchester police . Your petitioner was called out . from the rest of the prisoners by Sir Charles Shaw , and asked if theri was anything he could do to serve ycur petitioner ; that j your peutiuner complained of tbe gTeat hardships to which ho was subjected , notbbin ^ allowed to see jany of his family or friends , anil requested him to see Mr . Maude upon the subj-ct . which he promised to do ; that gentleman ( Maude ) however , refused every application made to him , and during the whole period of your petitioner ' s confinement , neither friend no * even legal adviser was allowed to visit him . That on the following Tuesday , August 23 , your petitioner ! was again brought up before the above-named : magistrates , and after a lengthened examination , was ] again put back till the Friday

      following , the prosecutor stating , that by that time he had no doubt but be | rouid be able to prove a very serious offence against your petitioner ; good and substantial bail was again offered , but refused , on tho same ground ' s an before . That ' on Eridaj , AugnBt 26 , your petitioner was again brought up , and after an elimination of witnesses had been gone through at great length , was committed to take bis trial at Liverpool , but would be allowed out , upon finding two sureties of two bundled pounds each , and himself in four hundred , giving fony-eight hours '; notice of bail ; that bail was immediately tendered ] In court ; notwithstanding , yonr petitioner wes put back till the forty-eight hours should transpire , and was ultimately liberated on Tuesday , the 30 th day of August , at four o ' clock in the afternoon , being ninety-six hours in prison after the bail bad been first tendered in court" Now , it was dear in this instance , that not more than forty-eight hours was required to inquire' into the solvency of the bail :

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      but it was determined to prolong the imprisonment , in the most wanton , up justifiable manner , for forty-eight hours longer . If a committee were granted , he should be able to prove that it Was well known to the magistrates that the bail which was offered by . Leach and his fellow-piiseners conld not hava been better as regarded the gentlemen who presented themselves 'for that purpose . " Shortly after , your petitioner was again arrested on a second charge of conspiracy , and after seven days' confinement in New Bailey lockups , was liberated , upon finding two sureties of £ 200 each ,, and himself in £ 400 , to appear at Liverpool , and answer to the second charge of conspiracy . That yonr petitioner appeared at Liverpool , when tbe first charge upon which y . tur petitioner was arrested , and after suffering thirteen days '

      confinement under the circumstances above mentioned , tbe indictment against your petitioner was abandoned , and , as he believes , from a knowledge the prosecutor had tbat his witnesses were most grossly and foully perjured , and that your petitioner had ample means to prove them so . That your petitioner has great reason . to coin plain of the unconstitutional conduce pursued towards him by the authorities and police of Manchester ; your petitioner , therefore , prays that your honourable House will be pleased to institute an immediate inquiry into your petitioner ' s case . " Thus , then , the result was , that when they went to trial at Liverpool the whole charge was abandoned , and thus these men were kept nineteen days iu prisou without bail , when it was clear , from the very commencement , that tbe whole charge must be abandoned . After such a proc-eiii g , it was monstrous to talk to them of justice to these individuals . Mr .- Leach stated that he had been

      confined with Messrs . Turner , Tinker , and Seddons . He ( Mr . Duncombe ) should now call the attention of the House to the cases of Mr . Turner aud three other persons , some of whom had been confined for thirteen days , and some for nineteen days . Mr . Turner was a highly respectable printer in Manchester , and the supposed offence with which he was charged was tbe printing the placard wbich was affixed to the door of Leach , and for which he was apprehended . For this Mr . Turner was taken up , and confined m one of the cells of the Town-hall for three or four days before be was examined . When he was arrested , also , a very great outrage was committed with respect to two of hia apprentices , who were carried away by the superintendent of police . ( Mr . Beswick ) under the pretext tbat if the apprentices appeared before the magistrates with Mr . Turner they could get back earlier to tell the result to Mrs . Turner .

      The Attorney-General asked whether this waa alleged in any petition from this person ? Mr . T . Dunc'jMQS said that Mr . Turner had noit presented a , y petition to the House , but he had been requested by that individual , and by Mr . Tinker and Mr . Seddons . to make their respective cases known to the house . Turner , then , wa »» carried to the cells , and after the lapse of time which he had already described , and after ail the impediments which h id been thrown in his way of getting bail , he was liberated . Turner , on hearing the nature of tbe charge against him , and believing tl . at he bad been guilty of no offence , on hia trial at Liverpool pleaded guilty to the mere circumstance of having printed the placard , and since then he had not been ealled up for judgment . But was this

      an ofivnee of such a nature that a person merely charged with it should be locked up hi a felon ' s cell , not more than thirty inches wide , aud where there was not capability fur four men to sleep , and where the place was swarming with vermin ? This was a most revolting proceeding towards those who were presumed to be innocent in the eye ot tbe law—( hear ) . The apprentices were carried away under the pretence that they would shortly return and inform Mrs . Turner of tbe result ; but instead of that they were conveyed to tha I * le of Man and kept there for the purpose ef giving information and evidence against their employer . These apprentices were kept in the Is ! e of Man until tbe special commission sat at Liverpool la a t October . As he had just stated , Mr . Turner , thinking tbat he bad

      been guilty of no harm in printing this paper , -when his trial came on pleaded guilty , and what was the result ?—why that he had not been brought up for judgment . Wnen the persons who were engaged in getting up the cases for the prosecution at this commission found that they could make nothing of the apprentices , and tbat they were not necessary for the prosecution of their employer and the other persons against whom charges had been brought respecting the placard , they sent ths superintendent of police to Mr . Turner , and said that be must take back his apprentices . Mr . Turner replied , no , they had left his service , to the great injury of his business , and tbe persons who had induced them to do so were the responsible parties * Upon this Mr . Beswich , thinking to alarm Mr . Turner , pulled out a letter

      which he aileged be bad received from Mr . Gregory , the gentleman who was sent down bf the Government to investigate the cause of these disturbances , and read it to him , in which it was stated , that if Mr . Turner did not take back tbe boys , that the Government would have him up to London , and proceed to have sentence passed upon him . Now he ( Mr . Duncombe ) should like to see the Government which would , alter this , bring up this person for judgment because he did not comply with the orders wbich were alleged to have been made respecting these apprentices by Mr . Gregory , an 1 whom , by the bye , he still refused to receive . Then , with respect to toe cases of Messrs . Tinker and Seddons ; be thought that their treatment bad been still worse . Ho would read to the House a statement which had been

      made to him on this point by these twe persons . They stated— "Ou the 14 tQ of August , 1812 , we . Isaac Tinker and George Seddon were apprehended and taken from our beds at two o ' clock in the morning by the superintendent of the police , Richard Beswick , and a numerous body of special constables and soldiers . We were then taken to the Town Hall , Manchester , ani . after undergoing the ordeal of searching were locked up , without an hearing before a magistrate , or examination during a period of six days , that is to say , from two o ' clock on the morning of Sunday , until ten o ' clock a-m . on the following Friday . At this period ( Friday ) we were brought before the stipendiary magistrate , Mr . Mauie , when Beswick , not being prepared with evidence , we were remanded until tbe following Tuesday .

      On this occasion our able barrister , Mr . Green , proved tbat the several charges of the indictment were only mi 8 dameanonr offences . The officer who apprehended us refused to shew his authority for so doing . We were again remanded till the following Friday , when , no evidence being forthcoming , we were again remanded till the Tuesday next : we were then brought up in a close court , and our friends refused admission . Mr . Bus-wick again appeared , but stated that be had no evidence to adduce , although he confessed , 'he had ransacked the town for that purpose . ' We were now admitted to bail , to appear again in a fortnight , and were compelled to find two bma fide sureties of £ 100 e .-ch . At the time appointed we again appeared at the Borough Court , when Beswick having

      communicated to the magistrates that there was no evidenee , we were dismissed . You will thus perceive we were in prison nineteen days , and eleven days on bail . In conclusion , it may be well to state that we havs both been unemployed since that period , and have scarcely the chance of succeeding again . Seddon , who is a delicate man . is fast declining , and Tinker and family are suffering severely . " These persons were in prison in tnia way for nineteen days , and there never was a gres » er violation of the liberty of the subject than in this proceeding , it might be well te state tbat these me . bad been almost constantly eut of employment since that period , and they assured , him that there was scarcely any chance of their obtaining it again . Aftex this do not t-11 him that this was law , or anything like

      law , for the Habeas Corpus Act was virtually and practfcally repealed if such proceedings as these were to be tolerated . From the case of Leach ar . d his associates in the prison , he would proceed to that of Skevington . This person , in the petition which bs presented to the House , stated that "in tbe mouth of August last tha people deemed it right to cease working , but were peaceable . On tbe day before tbe people struck ( Thursday , August 18 th ) . the magistrates of this district commenced swearing in constables ; and on the Friday , the day the people struck , they swore in the whole day—they sworn in , drinking at the public expense . A peaceable meeting was hf-ld at six o ' clock in the evening , and notwithstanding tha two special constables endeavoured to make a disturbance the Deoplo

      separated quietly , intendirjg to meet at eight the same night , but the constables being so drunk , and anxious for 3 riot , the meeting was given up , to show that the people were for peace . The magistrates continued at the public office , and had the attendance of policemen , pensioners , and special constables , which caused boys and girls to assemble , from curiosity , when , no disturbance having taken place , the rioc act was read . On th « following morning , the 20 th of August , I was arrested et my own door , on a charge of using seditious language , about one or two hundred policemen , pensi' > Dera , and constables , with the head of the police , coniiug for me , and I was taken before the magistrates , Messrs . Philips and Dawson , and the Rev . J . Dudley . On ths te » tiii ) ony of one

      constable , whose evidence waa refuted by three , I was ordered to find bail to keep tbe peace for six ini . uth * . only oue ixiur being allowed to obtain it . Boim Me bail being then refused , I was conveyed to Leicester , escorted out of the town by about 500 policemen , pensioners , and constables , and nine soldiers with drawn swords , tte soldiers and four policemen going all the way with me . At Leicester I wua treated as a felon , and lived on felon ' fare , washed in the bath , prison dress , \ &c . ; remaining there till the 23 rd of August , when tbe difficulties thrown in the way of bail were removed . Your petitioner further begs to state , that on the following Monday some jpersons were taken up on the highway , aud required to find bail for having walking-sticks . On Tuesday afternooB ,

      scouting parties were sent ont , one of which found some men at the monastery , where soup is given away j they brought them away as beggar * , getting hereabout five o ' clock the same evening ; and after nine , thougn they had been sent to bed , the magistrates bad tb ^ a called np , and committed for one month , and one man , because he was known to be a Chartist , tothwe months' hard labour . " With respsct to the men wM had been taken into custody , and who had been ajj luded to by the petitioner , be ( Mr . Dancombe ) baa received a representation regarding their case , from a person of the name of Warner , which he would read to toe House . This paperwas dated Lough boro " , and proceeded " John Mee and others were taken up on tbe 22 nd 01 August , by the inspector and thirteen of the county police , armed with swords and cutlasses . They toos Continued t » our seventh ptge . J

      Untitled Article

      fi THE NORTHERN STAR

      The Debate On Mb. Duncombe S Motion .

      THE DEBATE ON MB . DUNCOMBE S MOTION .

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), April 8, 1843, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct476/page/6/