Current:

Northern Star (1837-1852), 17th June 1843, Edition 2 of 5, Page 4, THE NORTHERN STAR, SATURDAY, JUNE 17, 1843.

Page 4
Page 4
4 of 8

On this page

  • Departments (3)
    • THE NORTHERN STAR, SATURDAY, JUNE 17, 1843.
    • So sKeaBerg aun GzoYve&gQvRtfWp*
    • TO TRE EDITOR OF THE MORNING ADVERTISER.
  • Text (13)
  • Transcript

    • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

      Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

      Untitled Article

      C 0 H 02 fEE S INQUEST . ( From the Morning Oiratdtle . ) IteilH OT A ChaBEST BlOTSB IS TE& PiSIIES-• 5 UKT . —On Sainidsy , a lengthened invesag&tion took place in ihe General Penitentiary , Milibank , Westminster , before Mr . Esgs . denary coroner for WesmiEsiei , and s TespeoraWe jury , on the body of John Ashler , sj-cd 34 , ia * a a tradesman at . Stafford , snd leader ef a Chaxris * association , who was convicted in October last , ^ ai lie Stafford special sesssns , in'beiBs ; coJiceraed with others m the fetsffordshire Chants * riots , and sentenced to twelve SBeBths * impreonffiesi in the Penitentiary- The easefiXrirrf much inleTesi , After the jury were sworn they ranged ike body of the deceased , -wiicfe -vras laid in the dead house of ihe prison ; 3 j presented so eEaelated an appearance as to ¦ excite the sympathy of ail present . On the return ¦ of riejury 10 the 300 , 0631 room , the following evi-< ience was adduced . •"" " *¦—'~— '"' " " "* " ~~ " ~~ "

      . . . . The Rev . Daniel KihS , governor and chaplain of 4 he prison , deposed that the deceased Vfs 3 received -ca Ihe ' ih of December , having been tried and con-TieteoHhe previous 1 st of October , ai the Stafford Epseial-sessions , for riot and ieing concerned in muaTrful meetings , for which he was sentenced to twelve months' 5 mpTisoianEnt in the penitentiary . By the Foreman of the Jury—The deceased was in $ ood health when he wa 3 received into the prison , hut his misd appeared deeply affected at hisatnatioiu He was a issster tailor si Staffordj and has left a wiaow and family .

      By the Coroner—The deceased first became ill in February ls = t , when he was received into the in-£ naary , " and attended by Dr . Bailey , physician to ihe prison . His sentence did not include labenr . By a Juror—Since bis imprisonment he has occasonally been viated by his friends , after -which he was generally more depressed in mind . While in leallh he was Dot alloired more than the prison diet , but during the period he was in thernfirmary he had every description of nourishing srticles ; in fact , whatever the medical attendant considered esseniial to his recovery . By the CcroBeT—The deceased was allowedto walk in the yard occasionally . Ko undue severity ^ was ever exercised towards him . J afforded him ail tire indulgence in my power , having an eyo to the Government orders respecting such descriptien of prisoners . . He Eever made any complaint to me .

      By the Foreman—The deceased was-allowed books , anJ penSj ink , and paper , and was accusjomed to lead very much . He was not allowed to mis with the other prisoners , bnt often conversed ¦ srah the oScers of the prison , when he advocated iis principles and complained of ihe n » jusi sentence le had received ; at the same time alluded to the Government persecution of Feargns O'Connor and other martyrs to their cause . By a juror—The silent system is done awayjvkh in the prison . The health of the prisoners is better than formerly , owing to tie short sentences . Taere have been only seven deaths during the last twelve months .

      Dr . Bailey , physician to ihe prison , said—The deceased was admitted to the infirmary in February last , suffering from serofulons affection , rheumatism , jaundice , and general debility . . He had every care and nourishment afforded him , but he grannslly sunk , and died on Wednesday . His irody was opened , when the viscera , heart , lungs , and mesen : eric fluids were found affected with scrofula . By the Foreman—Scrofula is a prison complaint , T > nt the deceased was constitutionally scrofulous . Imprisonment tciZ ? aggr&rsctU ihe disorder .

      There being no further evidence , the jury returned a verdict of "Died by the visitation of God "

      Untitled Article

      TTTR TRIAL GB WILLIAM SENTCEDy , BEFOKE MB . SOMCHOB GENERAL , AT ATBT , ON FRIDAY , THE 2 « H DAY OT AUGUST , 1797 * * i WiHisin , Kennedy stood indletea for aiding and . assisting s numerous armed mob , on Saturday night the ' 6 th of Msy last , in an attack on ths Caarter-- £ cbool- house of Caxberry , inlabited bj Stephen Sparks , mister ' thereof , with an intention to take away the life of the " said master , and to rob the said bouse of anas , the pro- \ perty d the said Stephen Sparks , and of arms the pro- ' jerty of several yeomen of the Grand Canal Legion , ' _ there deposited for safety ; snd also for firing several [ shots into the said bouse , with an intention to kill the , said Stephen Spstks , tontrary to the Statute ,-&c j On this indictment he was arraigned , and pleaded ' 2 fot Qoilty . ' .

      Stephen Sparks , sworn—Said he "was master el the Charter-scbool-bsusB of Carberrj , that he had a good ¦ sight to remember the 6 th of May ; his reason for re- ] saemberingit ko-wsII was , that on t& £ t Eii ; ht , or the i X £ Xt morning , hislsanse-wsE attacked bj a great number \ -of men , he believed near three hundred , most of them ] "werearmed "Kith guns ; they attacked the house inj front ; they thre-s' a great nxtmber of stones and fired f against the windows ; the guns-were loaded-vrtlh ball ; j the shot entered into sevsral -windovs of the room , ; lodged in the Ttind <» w-frames snd shntteis , snd man ; yanrofi along the "walls in different directions . Witness ' uerer staid Jocg in any one situation , be ran from- one i 'Vlxukrei& another ; he was exposed to the shot of the ' persona ¦ who fired-TEryfreqxiEntiy , Esveral ba 31 s pasEec eloss to him , he thanked God neither te or hial lamijy or party received any wound . He bad six per- ¦ sons in ib « Lousb beside bis son ; tbey fired repeatedly j on the persons who made the attack ; -whenever the jjarly without fired a volley ttiey save a shout , or ratker >

      a Jfell ; the ; desired -witness to tbrow out Ms anaa . j TVitneEsaBd his party kept firing on&em ; lie did not grra them bis arms . Theywent off ; ne beard a great ] £ hent ; the ; said they would be back again and send j ¦ witness snd Ms family to bell ; be ss"w a party on the i hill coming towards the honse , witness lhonghtihey | lad rallied ; he and his parry fir ^ en them ; -when he | heard the woras " Wicklow—friends , " lhsy stopped ! their fire ; one of the "Wicklow -was unfortunately ' killed bya sbotfrom thelicnse before th % y -were kmJwn ; i be sa ; d ike piisoner -at the bar was foob after brought | to bis house in company wiih another man ; they ¦ were ' bronght in by s party of flieWickJow ; -sntness knew the prisoners ; lie asked the prisoner Kennedy . for-God"a . sake , -what could induce kom to attack -srttnesa ; hej would not make any -luswer ; troBid aot ^ peak one I ¦ word ; ipitness solemnly declared Kennedy tras as sober &s he ithe -witness ) icas at the time of girinjj his evidence . There iras a ccnsideiable deal of isjnry done the house ;' it cost upwards of fifteen pounds to repair tbe windows ; j several balls -were fired into the rocm ' where -witness ' s :

      famDywera ; he made no doubt cut be -sae fxsgnently •' in great danger ; he heard several kails pass qaite close ¦ to him ; he stood mostly in front , to have an eppor- 1 tEEiry of firing with effect Hs is cra-vinced there -could f not be less than three hundred men at the attack . ' ¦ lieutenant Heppeastall said he wsa a I / . entenant in i EdeEderry in May last ; remembered the nubt of tbe ! 6 th of May . The soldiers at the camp -were alarmed by ' tbefitauent reports of mmqnetry ; aboat twelve at ' Eiijit , ihe drum beat to arms ; the party W 3 s fenned [ 5 nxo three oivisions ; ¦ witaiesi commanded CEe psrly ; they took different roads ; wiJaiefis marched Irs p ^ rty towards TvUlismstown ; he had got s . hint that Mr . TTOHbibs" and < 3 aptain Gralian ' s houses -wo ^ Iq ic

      attacked that nig ht ; sritnesa Had sot msicfcfcd far , i -when ha heard Trflies towards <^ rberry bill ; ¦ he ) crossed ovez towards it ; he still heard tbe firing ; and shcmtiRj ?; -when he came to the top of the hill , be saw a hoses under him ; he asked whose it was ; some s-i the men said it was Spsrkes ' s ; they bad not , xetnzned far , when several shots were -dsscharged from < ^ ie house al bis party , one of Ms men vrss ah-jt ; and > himself near bf ing killed , the b&n passed throa ^ h his ' side lock , he tbrew himself on thegrcusd , aEd-criec j out murder—Tv'icklo'w—friends—several talla passed tcr » iigh his clothes , he saw & msn running from the ' ioase , witness ran np to him and knocked hka down , j He arkedlam vrlio is was , but he -won ! * not make any 1 answer ; -witness swore he would put him to d « . th if lie did not tell who be was ; but he would not speak ;

      at was the prisoner ai tie bar ; lie gave fr'm in charge to his Serjeant , and west forward wits some of the ; meat he soon after saw another man inanicg alcpg the i tSUi "WitDess czme irp -wiib Mm an * kiiotk = d liiiii do-sn wiHi the butt end of his fire ' leck . The man asked far merey , and tbst if Ms life was spired , be . "Weald discover the persons who were there ; witness ; stizrd him by the collar , brought him np to where he \ tsA left the other prisoner ; asked him if he knew that man , pointing to the prisoner at the bar . Kjlsad , the ether prisoner , said yes , that is B 31 K ^ uncdv , thB bregne-maker , of Elshawanna . he -was with us . Hjlend said ths . tIKeraedj had sworn him , before liej went to Spsik * s in the old i ^ tcrch yard of Car-berry ; witntss teonght them down to Mr . Sparks . On his cross-ey . TTtiTifttion , he said he did nst ses a

      fan with the prisoner at the bar . He said he pnt a » pe round t £ s prisoner ' s neck , snd swore he would hang him if be did not discovtrMs party , and acknowledged he drew the cord pretty figbt ; bat he could not get a -word from Mm . Hjland discovered of several others , who-wgre taken ihat morning . Alexander CaSiy said he was a private in the Wick-3 ow Mflitla ; -went cut under tbe command ef Lieatea * nt HeppenstaD , the eight the < Jharter * cuss was attacked ; they tame vp jast as it was over . Ths defcnSers jnade off when the "Wicklow came np ^ they fired some shots—one of Mb comrades was killed . Witness aaw toe prisoner running from the ionse from tjiewall ^ rp 4 ihe MB . He was taken by the party . He tsdagunan iifl hand . Tbe lieutenant knocked Mm down : he "would not ttll who lie was .

      OnMfl cross-examination , said he is sere Kennedy hid a gun as hs came up . "WibitEs -rc = s within a yard of tiie ISeutenant ; he kept near Mm , and could see taejprisoner as Wt 3 as he . He is perifive Kennedy isd a gun , and wiinea saw Mm drop it , Serjeant Ponnden said be saw the pasostr rnnning frem ththona . He diS not see a gua with his ; bnt sas ^ one about tiurty yarfisfroia where h * e w = s rcsipng . TWtaea-was ' i ^^ to Mx . Hcppesstall ; Liea ; cnznt . ga-ve lie ; prisoner into witoesa ' s care . Ifes pri ^ Dtr Jay downiuVwonldiaot speak a wetd . The par !? soon after brcngbtBpanotcerprisGEfcr jByland ) . fie s = d . 3 fb& first : lasnrwas-JS'nBeSY , tte hrugae-makix- The prisaBsrs "were brongBt do"wn to Mr . ^ J ^^ * aL * a ^** " vsrds to tbe camp ' afeXdendsrrj

      Untitled Article

      Stephen Hyland , the approver . Q ,. Do you know Kennedy , the prisoner at the bar ? - A . Yes , and by virtue of my oath I never knew any barm of the boy in my life 1 , N . B . H viand was ordered off the table—a bill of indictment sent up to tire Grand Jury against him pnt on bis trial—convicted , snd had sentence of death pissed on h \ m instanter . The evidence for the Crown closed here .

      Patrick Reiily , for prisoner , said he overtook the prisoner at the town on the evening of the 6 th of May last , near Ms own beuse ; but iras so drunk , that -witness weald not pay Mm fifteen shillings he owed him for shoes . Tbe prisener would not let witness quitMni fin he drank with Mm . "Witness -woald jnot have returned "with Mm , bnt was afraid he -would fall in the ditch . They went ts one Duff's , in Kisbawanna ; prisoner called for a pot of ale , and soon af ^ er quit Mm ; it was after nightfall . Witness did not « ee Mm after , till he saw Mm in ConrL

      in answer to questions by the Court , said be lives within a mile of the prisoner ' s , and -witMn about two miles of Mr . Sparks . He heard Kennedy was taken prisoner next day . He never told Sparks or any other person that Kennedy bad been so drunk that evening ; Kennedy was a lad of very good character . : In Ms cress-exaroinationB M ? . Reillysaiflhetadbeen attacked by the defenders himself , some time before ; but had beaten them off . Catherine Doff , sworn—Lives at Kishawdnna , the prisoner and Faddy Reiily came into her { house about nightfall , the night Mr . Sparks ' s house iras attacked , Kennedy was the drunkest man she ever saw , they drank a pot of ale together . Mr . Beilly , went away , and Kennedy quarrelled with witness for not giving Mm more iiqnor , she -would not let Mm Btay any longer in the house for fear of tbe soldiers ; be went asshetboaght to Ms own house , lives within five or Bis perches of

      witness . - Bose Kennedy , sworn—Lives at the new chapel , saw tbe prisonei , the night of the attack at Mr . Sparks , be came to her father ' s between ten and eleven at night , they were all in bed but witness . He was bo drunk , he-was hardly able to walk ; he sat by the fire , as mnch as he could do was to keep from filling . H « was « ourting witness , she heard the shots , and was afraid they would waken her father ; and she made the prisoner go out , she pnt him oat by force , because her father would be angry if he found him there , she said she loved tbe prisoner , and let him visit hex against' her father's consent seTeral nights . Counsel for the Crown did not cross-Examine her from motives of delicacy ; she appeared a modest and very beautiful girl . Hsre the evidence for the prisoner closed , the Jury retired and in eighteen hours and & h * lf brought in their verdict" Gnilty . *'

      On account of ihe evidence in favour of this prisoner , Ms remarkable good character and the informer ' s evitience that fear alone made him lodge examinations , but above all as one of the Jury refused te find him guilty , till Ms brothers were going to throw Mm out of the window , several gentlemen , grand jurors , and others presented a petition in Ms behalf to tbe Solicitor-General , who promised to send it to the Lord Lieutenant ; but Kennedy was executed . '

      Untitled Article

      REPEAL OF THE UA IO £ . Apteb tbe ineffectual attempt of Henrt Gratiam and a few other Irish members to resist that unhappy connexion with England , which has Bince proved such an endless source of expence to both countries , Gkattah exclaimed : ** Well ; thanks be to God , Ireland will now be avenged for all the wrongs , the insults , and injustice that England kas heaped upon her ; for she will send one hundred of the most reprobate rascals that rabid Faction can produce to mix with her legislators and poison her counsels !" Whatever Ghattak's feelings were , when rejoicing

      in anticipation of this negative triumph , we imagine he had bnt little notion that , in reality , the very fact of inoculating the British Legislature with tbe spirit of Irish faction would lead to the restoration of an Irish Parliament . In the present article then , we shall establish the fact , that the question of Repeal is , in reality , more an English than an Irish question . We don&t , like the Times , handle this question according to the varied shapes in which Irish agitation presents itself . We do not rely so much upon the M if this be bo , that ought to be so ; and , if it is not eo we can't tell why it is not bo . " The deductions , the collateral issues , the similies , the tropes , the figures , the metaphors , the prophecies

      and the nne-spua reasonings of the' Times , are above our humble comprehension and far below our contempt . Accustomed as we are to see an amusing variety in the political Kaleidoscope , we were scarcely prepared for so many new patterns of public opinion , even in these days of invention , as that Journal has presented . Floundering about between Administration and Opposition , the Sock Exchange and Commercial Interest , Doctor Pdset

      and the Pope , the Orange Faction and the Catholic Hierarchy , the English Chancellor and Irish Magistrates , it has done much mischief without one single good " gne = 3 " in its recent articles upon the Repeal of the Union and the State of Ireland . Let us now see whether or not the queotion of the Union 13 one of interest to the English people . We do not use the term people here with any limitation . In our present consideration , the term people applies to the whole of English society , and not merely to tbe working classes .

      On the 1 st of January , 1 S 01 , 100 Irish Members became part and parcel of the Legislature of the United Kingdom : and if we take np the Parliamentary history of the country from that period , especially to 1815 , when peace was proclaimed , we shall find that Mr . Pitt in Ma day , and Lord Lttebpool in hi 3 day , relied upon the corrupt support of the Irish Members as their majorities to increase the Debt , to violate the Constitutionj and to overawe pnblic opinion .

      No twenty years of the history of England present such a catalogue of Ministerial profligacy , corrup tion , and tyranny as th ' eae { wenty years , from 1801 to 1820 , both inclusive . And the reader will find , with very few honourable exceptions , that the 100 Irish Members invariably constituted tbe nriBChieyons majorities of tbe English Minister . An open contract existed between the Irish Orange Faction and the English Minister ; the . conditions of which were : — "Take ye bank notes ; Give me your votes : ' '

      and any benefit which might have been likely to re = nlt from a cordial onion was destroyed by the means to which the Irish party were compelled to resort for the purpose of strengthening their Parliamentary interest at home . Places were created without nnmber ; pensions w ; ere bestowed without service ; titles were conferred without merit ; every channel for jobbing that human ingenuity could dense was opened ; road jobbing , land jobbing , church jobbing , law jobbing , army jobbing , navy jobbing , customs jobbing , revenue jobbing , excise jobbing , and police jobbing were eo many

      profitab ' e speculations handed over to the privileged few . During that period the ^ laim of the Catholics to Emancipation was ihe absorbing Irish question . The Catholics most interested in its accomplishment were ineligible to sit in Parliament ; and the Protestant candidates , wilh never a half-dozen exceptions , could best recommend themselves to the favour of the drivers of Catholic forty shilling freeholders by a pledge to support a Tory Minister and oar glorious Constitution in Church and State . Some three or fonr large landed proprietors in each county were consulted : as to the most profitable disposition to be made of the mountainers upon their estates . The Catholic voters were driven in flocks by the Squire ' s bailiff to vote for a

      Protestant candidate , pledged to perpetuate their degradation . In return for this service , the whole traffic of the eonntry was handed over to those landlords by whose coalition the ProteBtant interest was upheld . The representative thus poked into Parliament was the tool of the coalition . He fumed , ajMTTiristied , and threatened ; the Minister with the opposition of self and brothers if any attempt was made to interfere witH the acknowledged prerogatives of the Orange party . Irish indnstry , thus paralised , wa ? , " very shortly after the Union , nneqcal to tbe task of supporting those domestic cormorants ; and the English Minister was compelled in 1816 to violate the most important article of the Act of Union by consolidating tbe Exchequer of the two countmr ; domestic p lunder

      Untitled Article

      being fonnd inadequate to pay the Irish party fox their corrupt support . It will be seen by ihe articles of Union , ( to be fonnd in oar eighth page , ] that by the seventh article , ibe respective debt of the two countries was apportioned as follows ; —England , for her share , to pay 15-17 th 8 , and Ireland , for herihare , to pay 2-17 ths . It will also be seen that this contract wa ° to hold good for twenty years ; and that any subsequent contract for the following twenty years was to be regulated by a just re-appointment , reference being had " "" : " " ' ~ - — - ¦

      to the rule established by tbe Aot of Union . By the 56 of George III ., this most important of the several articles of Union was violated by the consolidation of the Eaglish and Irish Exchequers . This flagrant act of injustice was forced upon the English Minister immediately after the peace , when the disruption of the army and its several lucrative concomitants so increased the hoard of idle paupers , that the single field of Irish peculation became too narrow for their use . The document to which we refer is of great importance

      and will be read with deep interest by all who would confine their advocacy of Repeal within legal limits . We would a"k , wherein differs a contract supposed to be made between a king and a people and a contract made between two individuals , and if not only nonperformance of the stipulated conditions , but total violation of the whole contract , would be grounds sufficiently strong for declaring it null and void in the latter case by what rale oi right can the very discussion of the violation of every one of its provisions in the former case he held to be

      seditious , illegal and unconstitutional I Let us see what really are the leading conditions of this contract which in the habendum" as we may call it , is stated to last for ever . Tho first article by which the nnmber of Irish members is apportioned , was violated , we acknowledge , with the consent of the United Parliament , by giving to Ireland five additional members . In ; the six subsequent articles we have the terms upon which the Irish contractors sold their country ^ every one of which has been violated ; except , indeed , we are to consider that tho

      condition to expend the stipulated amount in Irish improvements was fulfilled by its application to factious purposes . We hare before analyzed the condition of the seventh article which was to hold good for twenty-years , and which the united Parliament had no power to alter . If it had not been for the support of the Irish Members , the English Minister would have found it impossible to increase the National Debt to its present amount- Had it not been for the subserviency of that party , the

      English Minister would not have been able to make the successful inroads upon theoliberties and privileges of Englishmen , which , with their co-operation , he haBmade without difficulty ; while had the amount of monies contracted for , byjthe act of the Union been faithfully expended upon Irish improvements , England would not now be overrun with an Irish corps de reserve of labourers for the masters to fall back upon , as a means of reducing the wages of Englishmen .

      If we take a still more comprehensive view of the whole subject , we find the time of the United Parliament , night after night , occupied in angry Irish discussion ;; and whether Whigs or Tories are in office , they but become tbe administrators of patronage to their respective parties . The great value then to be attached to the present agitation is the fact that it takes tbe question out of the old see-saw . It is no longer a question as to which party can best govern Ireland , but as to how the two countries living in a state of union and amity can best govern themselves .

      The purification of the English Parliament is surely matter of deep importance to the English people of all classes : and this can only be accomplished by extracting from it the Irish poison upon which Gbattan relied for its contamination . And Ireland can have no chance of dealing with her domestic grievances—the principal of which is an expensive and unprofitable law-church , —so long as her representatives are chosen by persons upon whom the Protestant landlord must confer the franchise .

      In the words of Mr . O'Connor we say : If you have grievances to complain of , and if the most prominent are the burdens imposed upon you by an adverse Church and the restrictions imposed upon you by landlords lest your Emancipation should damage that Church to whose patronage they iook for support , —how can you suppose that those landlords , as patrons of Church property , will carve their Protestant lands into electoral qualifications to be used against their interest ?"

      . So long as the Protestant land must constitute the electivefranchise , so long will Catholic Emancipation be a mere empty sound ; so long will all the bnrdens of the Law Church be allowed to continue ; so long will the restrictions of landlords remain in force ; 8 nd so long will those angry feelings which disgrace both countries be kept alive between Catholio and Protestant . The remedy therefore , the only one which can be tffcetual for the correction of these

      grievances , is a transfer , from the soil to man , of that right which is inherent in him , and of which he has been udjustly deprived by brute force . Enfranchise : tbe Catholic man instead of the Protestant or Catholic land ) and then , when in full possession of his constitutional rights , should he invade , interfere vrfih , or attempt to abridge , those of his Prdtestast neighbour , we shall be amongst the first to demand from a freely chosen Parliament Buch measures as the weak shall require for their protection against the Btrong . So long as

      the Protestant laud is the shield of the Protestant Church , so long will the proprietor prefer leasing it to a Presbyterian or Protestant or Dissenting tenant , ( upon whose vote he can rely ) for twenty shillings an acre , to leasing it to a Catholic , ( whose vote he dreads ) for twenty-five shillings an acre . Whereas if the Catholic had the vote in virtue of his person , the Protestant landlord would accept him as a tenant at twenty shillings and sixpence an acre , rather than give it to a Protestant or Dissenter for twenty shillings and threepence aa

      acre . We think it , therefore , the duty of the English Chartists to struggle Eealously , peaceably , constitutionally , and incessantly for a Repeal of that Union by which their Legislature has been poisoned ; while it is equally the duty of Irishmen to struggle by the same means for the acquisition of those rights by which alone they can hope to have such a Legislature as Euglish gold cannot again corrupt ; and by which alone the Repeal becomes valaable or important to them . We have mnch yet to say , and especially to the Irish people , upon this great subject .

      Untitled Article

      THE RIGHT OF MR . O'CONNOR TO WALK THE STREETS . THE DUTY OF GOVERNMENT TO SEND HIM TO THE HULKS . Ws give the following article , whole and entire , without the' abridgement or alteration of a single word , from the Times of yesterday week : — " There aTe some things which may be either a blessing or a carse , and among them we may reckon the refinements of law . Where it is accessary-thai the liberty of the subject—the free enjoyment by every one of the social immunities to which he is fairly entitled , whether they be of purse or person , of fame or fortune—is to be secured from the tyranny which could otherwise be exerted bymight against right ; where poverty in rags is to be

      Eaved from the merciless oppression of wealth invested with power ; where a virtuous minority is to be sheltered from the rage of a remorseless majority ; or where the majority itself , exposed to haastrd from being in a more or Ies 3 defenceless condition , requires a shield against the attacks of a well-armed and cruel mintrity—in any of these cases we rejoice at the Bubtilty of the administrators of the law being able successfully to defend the oppressed against tb ? oppressor . But even in such cases our applause is not unqualified by the consciousness that there is something which ought to be censured ; we cannot bring ourselves to acquiesce with the whole heart in an acquittal bticg obtained by a mero quibble , however cordially wo may bail the fact

      Untitled Article

      of there having been an acquittal . When , however , a convicted criminal , who , either for the most BelfisH ends , or acting from mere recklessness , has instigated hundreds of his deluded fellow-subjects to set the laws of their country at defiance , has successfully urged them , by plausible sophistries , to peril tho property and livep of themselves and of all within reach of their violence , has succeeded in placing extensive districts under a system of terrorism , and in subjecting them , without compunction , to the calamities of civil war , and after his poor tools have been imprisoned ! and transported by scores for merely having obeyed his bidding , esoapes himself with absolute impunity , on the sole ground that the astuteness of some lawyer discovered a clerical error lin tho indictment , it is impossible to

      repress our indignation at the scandalous prostration of justice before the Belial of verbal nicety . WHAJT RIGHT has Feabgus O'Connor to BE NOW WALKING THE STBEKTS OF MANCHESTER as an innocent man ? Is there a single individual in Great Britain who has the remotest doubt , that , so far as justice was concerned , O'Couiior was guilty of the crimes for which he was tried ? Is there one , cither on the bench' or off it , who entertains the shadow of a suspioion that O'CONNOR OUGHT , as between himself and the community , TO BE NOW EXPIATING HIS OFFENCES a ^ aiDBt his victims of every grade—whether his duped colleagues in crime or tho innocent sufferers from his criminality -IN ; A DUNGEON OR THE HULKS ! He has been * let off' because in one count of the

      indictment—in one of what are denominated in Westminster Hall * the Gregorian counts , ' for what reason we cannot pretend to say—it happened that 'the venue' was emitted 1 No matter what was the notoriety of his crime—no matter that every Judge on the bench was as fully aware as tho convict himself of what the indictment meant , and bad no more doubt of its meaning and ot the accuracy with which it conveyod to the prisoner the fullest possible information that was necessary to enable him to make his defence—there was a clerical error ; and the judicial conscience could only be set at rest by giving the prisoner the

      benefit of it . Law this may be ; justice ic is nor . How much longer is this to be permitted ? Are acts of Parliament made to bind the good only : are they framed for the express purpose of entangling the poor in their meshes , and ot allowing the rich , as Mr . O'Connell boasts , * to drive a coach and six " through them ! ' We plainly tall our Legislators that the time is come when the conviction of a criminal muNt not depend on the chances of an indictment against him being so framed that the keenest legal acumen shall not find a single phrase in it capable of being distorted into conveying a meaning which no ordinary man conld detect . Wo must

      have the practice of the criminal law reduced to some accordance with common sense , and the people re-assured by finding that the laws which they are required to obey are not incompetent to defend them against the grossest outrages . What example can be * of worse effect at the present time , when "the ' ordinary power of the Constitution ' are referred to as being relied on by the ; Government to suppress rebellion in Ireland , than an acquittal like FeargHS O'Connor ' s proclaiming the utter inefficiency of those 1 ordinary powers ! ' Sir R . Peel is bound individually , it' his law reforms were not intended as mere clap-traps , or were not introduced by him

      merely that he might reap the laurels which had been planted by Sir S . R ^ mily and others , to obviate by sufficient enactments the glaring injustice , of which we have of late had such repeated reason to complain , of the spirit of the law being entirely set at nought in deference to its mere letter . He is bound , as the head of the Government , to justify the extravagant cost of tho late special commission by securing the punishment of the leading offender , and thereby to clear the Government and its officials from the suspioion under which they cannot but rest , of conniving at tho errors of their subordinates . If it was a proper exercise of the discretion

      of the Government that O Connor should be prosecuted to conviction last autumn—and of its propriety no suspicion has ever yet been hinted—it is equally as proper now that a fresh indictment should be preferred against him without a single week's delay , and that , while the facts are in the recollection of tho -witnesses who were produced on his trial , their evidence should bo again made use of . It is of more urgent importance that the supremacy of the law should be vindicated , and that those who are disposed to disobey it should be taught that tho chances of a criminal prosecution are not ou a par with those of a lottery or a dice-box .

      " There are plenty of gentlemen in Parliament who would not suffer a poacher to escape scot-free under similar circumstances , and we rely on some one proving in his place there that bis whole sympathy is not confined to his preserves . There are plenty who would give up even the Derby-day to vote for or against free trade . Let us see that there are ebme among them who will require the Government to prosecute O'Connor to a successful conviction . " We are at a loss which to admire most , the malignity , the impudence , or the ignorance , of this tirade . Fortunately all these qualities are so conspicuous that it must excite in every man ' s mind who reads it and who knows the facts , a thorough contempt and loathing for the scribbler who could writoit .

      " What right has Feargus O'Connor to be walking tho streets of Manchester ? " forsooth ! The ri ^ ht ef his obedience to the law , you fool ! a right which you violate in the penning of this flagitious article , and for which , if O'Connor does not trounce your proprietors , he deserves to be bugbitten to death . The Times asks : — u Is there a single individual in Great Britain who has the remotest doubt , that bo tar as justice was concerned , O'Connor was guilty of the crimes for which he was tried V

      Yes ; there are at least fourteen individuals in Great Britain who have no doubt at all upon the subject ; who know that O'Connor was not " guilty of the crimes for which he was tried ' ; and these are the twelve Jurymen who tried him , the Judge before whom he was tried , and the Attorney-General who prosecuted : him . All these parties koow-j and have recorded their conviction that O'Connor is not " guilty of the crimes for which he was tried . " Ho was tried for conspiracy , for riot » for illegal meetings , and tumultuous assemblies ; for the forcible prevention of labour ; and for a host of other " crimes" committed by the patrons of the Times . All these were

      industriously set forth in the indictment ; but the Judge said that these allegations of " crime" had no business there—that they could not be sustainedr-tho Attorney-General acknowledged that the Judge was right , and he abandoned many of tho " crimes" sought to be charged , at once . But though , even then , the indictment still charged many things upon the defendants which the law : does consider " crimes , " the Jury refused to credit the indictment , there being no evidence to support its allegations , and they ,: by their verdict , affirmed that they held O'Connor and others to be guilty only of that which they had just been told by the Judge Was " A MOOT POINT IN IHE VERY HIGHEST

      QUARTERS , AS TO WHETHER IT WAS ANY OFFENCE IN LAW OR not . " Tasse were the very words of the Judge , when charging the jury , in reference to the allegation contained in the fifth count of the indictment , the only count upon which O'Connor was convicted . And yet this malignant libeller , knowing this , impudently writes about : — " A convicud criminal , who , either for the most selfi&h ends , or acting from more recklessness , has instigated hundreds of his deluded fellow-subjects to set the laws of their country at defiance , has

      successfully urged them , by plausible sophistries , to peril the property and lives of themselves , and of all within reach of their violence , and succeeded in placing extensive districts undt-r a system Of terrorism , and in subjecting them , without compunction , to the calamities of civil war , aud after his poor- tools have been imprisoned and transported by scores for merel y feaviiig obeyed his bidding , escapes himself with ahsolute impunity on the sole ground that the astuteness of some lawyer discovered a clerical error in the indictment . "

      And affirms that O'Cosnor ought to be now expiating his offences in a dungeon or the hulks" ! J The animus of all this is so apparent ; the impotence of disappointed malice is so obvious , that if we had no other proof of that which we told the people at its very beginning—that the strike vjas an infernal faction plot—we should point triumphantly to this article as our best confirmation . Of course the Leviathan liar and slanderer is followed at a respectaful distance by all the small fish of the same fry . The Nonconformist , the Bradford Observer , the : Leeds Mercury Goody Goo * e and each other petty hireling of faction bas it ' s own " wee" note in tho wake of " the thundcrer's" roar . They will not succeed in inducing the A ttorney-^ Gerekal to prefer a new indictment against Mr .

      O'Connor ; for this simple reason : the Attorney-General knows as well as the Times knows that he has no ground cf leual accusation against Mr . O'Conncb—tl . a ; he has nothing whereon to make an in-

      Untitled Article

      THE FOURTH COUNT . Ws bare watched the proceeding of Queen's Bench every day since the argument of this Count on behalf of the defendants , when the Court were to "take time to consider their judgment , " but though looking ' * nights and mornings" until Thursday ' s Sun brought us the proceedings of the last day of term , we have perceived no account of it . Ju-ig . meut cannot now be pronounced npon that Count until November . We did suppose that the Fourth Coont would follow the Fifth , but this delay has somewhat altered our opinion . We now apprehend that the Government have a " deep fetch" in thus

      delaying judgment . Some of the parties foe whose punishment they are most anxious are at present out of the country ; there was not timo , supposing judgment had been given last Friday , for them to have legal notice , and be brought up for sentence this term ; aud we apprehend the notion was to be if the judgment should be given , against the Count , and the con » viefcions under it affirmed , these parties being onfc of harm's reach would keep so ; whereas it is supposed that this procrastination may induce the supposition that all intention of psDishment is given up , and that so the parties may return and put themselves into "the hands of the Philistines . '

      Untitled Article

      Sir , —Will you allow me space in your paper far & word of comment upen the brutal and significant attacks to which I have been subjected in the Time * newspaper , sinoe my successful opposition to the Messrs . Walter , in their attempts to usurp the representation of Nottingham . I shall pass over the libels which appeared in that journal in connection with the two elections , and which appeared prior io the recent decision of the Court of Queen ' s Bench upon the Rule to arrest judgment upon the only c . mnt , in a long indictment , upon which I was tried

      aud found guilty at Lancaster . I pass these by ; as a writ in a civil action for those libels was served upon the Solicitor for the Times on the evening preceding tbe publication of the very ignorant let ; er of a " Special Pleader , " which appeared in yesterday ' s number of that journal . Before I offer a few remarks upon that letter , permit me to observe that I laid the two recent outrageous articles which appeared in the Times newspaper in connexion with my case , before counsel , with the intention of pro * ceeding against the responsible parties , and upon which I received the 'following opinion , from an authority which will be considered better than that of the law-recruit of the 7 Ymes . It runs : —

      " I am of opinion that that part of the article la the Times of tho 9 . h June , 1843 , which I have marked with ink in the margin is a libel upon Mr . O'Connor ; and that he might sustain either an indictment , or an action against the proprietors of that paper . I also think it possible that tbe Court ot Queen ' s Bench might grant a criminal information against the proprietor upon the application of Mr . O'Conner , but their so doing would , I think , mainly depend upon tbe ability of Mr . O'Connor to negative , by affidavit , the trutb of the charge contained in the fifth count of the Iat 3 indictment against him , on

      which alone I understand he was originally found guilty . The Court expects an applicant for the extraordinary powers of the Court to come before them with clean hands ; &n £ if Mr . O'Connor negatives , on oath , the guilt of the charge imputed to him , I see no reason , in justice , why the Court should not afford him the Fame protection and advantages which they would afford to any other innocent individual against eo violent and mischievous a libel as this appears to me to be . If a criminal information is moved for , it must ba move 4 this term , which ends next Thursday , and it cannot be moved for the last day of term . "

      Now , Sir , as an Irishman answers one question by asking another , J think I may answer " Who is the traitor" ? by asking , "Who is the libeller" * With respect to the commentary of the " Special Pleader" upon my speech at Manchester , it applies to tho Times' Manchester correspondent rather than to me . la the short notice with which the Times honoured my speech at Manchester , there is not one word of truth . I never mentioned the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland , the Irish Secretary , or George IV . ; all of which the Times puts into my mouth . There was not a single resolution passed , although the Times correspondent communicates the fact that several resolutions were passed .

      And now . Sir , as to what I did say relative to the charge of treason . I said : — " They talk of making the agitation for Repeal , treason : why , they would have made the agitation for Reform , treason , had they dared to do fo . Treason , indeed ! What a whole nation to be guilty of treason ! If it was made treason to-morrow , aud if my conscience , my mind , and my judgment , approved tho treason , then should I be compelled to commit it , in conjunction with my countrymen peacefuliy struggling against op pre ? sion . " Sir , the difference between Mr . Walter and me , as Journalists , is this : my name stands boldly in the imprint , as the registered

      proprietor , while he tries to gratify his petty vengeance with impunity under that sympathy which a defenceless female would be sure to receive at the hands of a British jury . I much doubt that there is another instance on record of a journalist so far prostituting the gentleman to the wounded feelings of the angry politician , as is furnished by the Times in its endeavours to mark me out for unrelenting persecution ; and to meet and beat which I rely not more upon my own yigilanceand discretion than on the overstrained exertion of Mr . Walter and his tools , and which must create loathing . and disgust in the mind of every honest Englishman .

      If such are the means by which the Walters hope to dispose of political opponents , they will find themselves mistaken ; for wherever they present themselves before an English constituency there shall I be also , determined to resist bo gross a violation of all those rules by which the gentleman , the politician , and the journalist should be bound . la conclusion . Sir , I must say that it is rather an unfair mode of procedure to have a speech reported for me by tho Manchester correspondent of the Times , which I never made , and then be arraigned upon tbe falsehood when published a the Times . I have the honour to remain , Sir , Your obedient Servant Feargus O'Uossob . 6 , Chapel-place , Hammersmith , 14 th June , 18-13 .

      Untitled Article

      W . W . writes as follows : — " You have of course seen the letter of Mr . Ray . dated May 3 l 8 t , to the London Repeaers . , « The move is not a bad one . Under pretence or ' perilling the cause of Rapeal by a connection wlio those wbom Mr . O'Connel ! , the ' aagusf leader chooses to say are abettors of the ' abhorrent doctrine of physical force , ' and under the pretence that a junction with tbe Chartists would pour spies among tbe Repeaters , —as if there were not plenty of spies among tkem already , —all pledge of gWDg the sU&htest power to the people of Irel and—tor without suffrage there can be power—is dexterously

      eluded . . " Th 4 Repeal movement Is intended , if > fc sneceea , w > benefit the Irish aristocracy—and them alon ? r ^? whom tbe Irish people have always been saerinceo by Mr . OConnell , their ' august' leader . l a » - gust' ! ? Is Dab about to play at Kmg ana Queen ? ¦' We are not blind to the matter any more than our Correspondent , or our numerous Itjsk / rtfi *"" who write us in like style ; but we rememoer always Mr . O'Cdnnell ' s own maxim-- 'The nexi best thing to being right yourself , is to p ^ fS enemy completely in the wrong" If Dan stars out ot it this time , he shall at least have no plau

      sible pretext . A Constant Readeb—The guestion is one of mer law ; upon whicH ^ eing no lawyer we can give no opinion that could be safely trusted to . E . P . M ead— We are not at all surprised at the news ; though tee do not think it best to say anything just now . Our friend will exouie the non-inset tion of his letter , 'tis thftp . ly because we th ™*? better for the present to " let that flea stick W the too ' . " We are awake and looking out . W # shall most likely " drop our shoe-toe on . 6 i * rump . by and by ; but we wait for a fair kick and a clean one that shuli do its work . . Tivebton Charhsts— We have not room for taw

      address . James M . acphfbsow , Ap £ BDS £ N—His letter is shtd ittit lu luck ui space .

      The Northern Star, Saturday, June 17, 1843.

      THE NORTHERN STAR , SATURDAY , JUNE 17 , 1843 .

      Untitled Article

      diotraont stand . He has done his best already , and the Judges have shown him that his " best" is " no go . " J

      Untitled Article

      THE PRESS GANG—THE BLOOD CRY . The Tory press , from the Times downward , is demanding the blood of the Irish Repealers , with a yell of savage recklessness which we scarcely supposed that at this day could have been assumed . We give , as " a sample of the sack , " the following from the mouthpiece of the Sheffield Tories , the Sheffield Mercury : y ~ After some stupid abuse of Popery , the Editorial bloodhound thus proceeds : —

      " We have already stated that measures axe being taken to meet the difficulty at the point of the bayonet . Would itlnot be better to meet the agita-r tion with a halter in hand ? We have had a great deal of political special pleading of late about abstract rights—there is no evil in social life , no infringement of the common lavv , that is not capable of being argued by ( the same modus operandi . We want a well-defined cure , not for those who are taught rebellion , somuch as for those who teach it . " * * "We trust Parliament will apply a strong remedy to portending evils . "

      * * j * " But , eay tho Irish demagogues , the Union was an act of the Legislature , aud it is com ' peteut iii any British subject to petition for the Repeal of any Act of Parliament . This is true in the abstract , but the Union—the right of succession-f-tho Monarchy are all fixed aud settled by the Legislature , and , in our opinion , they are all treason or there is no such thing as treason . " ( Did ever such a bora-fool haudle pen before { I ** Tiie Union—the right of succession—the

      Monarchy , all treason" ! ; those are his exact words . Gods , what a " best possible instructor" ! " It is one thing ] for Parliament to Repeal an Act haviEg reference to questions of privilege , or taxation , aud another for the Legislature to stultify itself by an Acfc which deserves no other namo than / f / 0 de sc . " f * " Sir Robert Peel has no alternative but prompt , immediate , and vigorous measures—measures that shall reach miscreants who carry on a sort of ( wholesale trade in murder and incendiarism , and who evade the law with impunity . "

      There , gentle reader , there is the spirit of Toryism with a vengeance . ) Meet agitation with a halter in hand 1 Should Sir Robeht Peei , want a " walking gallows' to assist in " tranqoillizing " Ireland , we hope he will not forget the special claims of the " gillows" Editor of the Sheffield Mercury . Declare the Repeal agitation treason , and punish the agitators as traitors ! Softly , Mr . Addlebrains ; if to petition for the Repeal of the Union , or even the alteration of the line of succession , be treason , what were those who altered the succession by expelling James II ., and calling in Dutch William ; Eh ? We have always heard

      that tkey were " jglorious revolutionists . " Your doctrine of " treason" " won't do now-a-days , ne how , " as the Yankees would say . Every generation has clearly the right oi willing by what form of Government it will be protected , —all your musty parchments and Castlerea « h Acts notwithstanding . From this and other speoimens of English Toryism , O'Connell may see what he has to expect at the hands of that party . And yet , oven at such a moment ; when tbe hand-writing is on the wall ; when the ships are in the offing , and the demon cry of j " Put your tmst in God , And keep your powder dry , "

      Is almost ringing through the land ; when the " Tory hunterb" are panting for the blood of the Irish people , and waiting but for one false step , to " let slip the dogs o f war" ; " Like the swift lightning , which doth cease Ere one can say it lightens ";—at such an hour , O'Connell spurns the aid of the only party in England , jwho either can or will efficiently assist him in the carrying of Repeal ! Well , well ; Dan knows his own game , or thinks he does so . His speech at the Corn | Exchange , last week , wherein he denounced the English Chartists , has created a spirit of indignation against him that may not be eery easily allayed ! We epeak not of the Chartists , but of the Repealers , whose grief and vexation at

      this conduct of O'Connell it is impossible adequately to describe . The best possible feeling was existing between them and the Chartists , who were mutually aiding andgassisting each other , when lo I Mr . O'Connele throws in the apple of discord * and strives to undo all the good that has been effected by the real patriots of both parties . Many parties , even of his best friends , speak and write most strongly on the matter . Wo are inundated with letters to which we , acting from a different spirit to that which the writers ascribe to him , do not give currency . ( We desire to give every matt credit for the best motives by which he can be

      actuated ; and we ! make Mr . O'Connell no exception . Possibly be may have in view some stroke of polioy which we do not yet see , and which may sufficiently excuse jthe apparent suicidal course he is pursuing : " Charity hopeth all things / ' But let O'Connell be wary . We have laboured hard to obtain for him with tbe English Chartists credit for sincerity in this movement—credit for a honest purpose to carry through Repeal , and not to bully back the Whigs to power ; if this be his purposeif he be as honest now as we [ have tried to think , let him not prevent the hands and hearts of Irishmen from uniting for the salvation of their father ?

      land ; nor imagine that Ireland can obtain her freedom by the disunion of her sons . Many Irishmen who have not yet joined the Repeal Association , but were about to do so , declare that , if the English Chartists [ are to be expelled , they will not join it . Others , who are members , declare that they will now join the Chartist Association . Let O'Connkll pause ere ho finally reject the generously tendered co-operation of the English Chartists ; let him reflect that the battle is not yet over , nor the victory won . And , at all events , let not his con duct , absurd and foolish though it may be , induce Englishmen to be unjust to others and themselves ; to withhold their aid from Ireland struggling for

      her rights . Let jus remember always that honour and interest combine to induce us to sympathise with our Irish brethren . Honour bids us to assist them , that the remembrance of crimes committed b | r English tyrants may be effaced by the fraternal deeds of English J patriots ; and interest , that our labour market may be freed from Irish competition , and all the deadly consequences which have . folio wed in its train ; while the manly fteling of our nature should command us to assist then : that the right may triumphL

      Untitled Article

      THE FACTORY BILL . Tre Educational Clauses of this great measure have been withdrawn ; the Government of this country have actually cowed before the bristling , bu 3 t'ing , bullying of Mr . Epw . Baines , and a few scores of hypocritical , ignorant , and malignant Dissenting parsons , acting as catspaws for the mammonooracy by whom their several conventicles are upholden . This is the most disgraceful aot of which the Government have been guilty during their whole career , and

      proves , more clearly than any other thing could have done their sense of their own want of power for anything but evil . This is , at all events , the most charitable light in which to view the matter ; for , if we do not thus think , we must conclude that their original purpose , in the introduction of the measure , was one of mere clap-trap , and that they are [ glad to be relieved by the virulence of pharisaism from the performance of a task in which they felt no real interest . Will the protective clauses of the Bill follow the Educational ones 1 We think it most likely that tkey will : they will not be less virulently assaulted , and we see little chance of the left hand of the Government ' s humanity offering

      any effective resistance to the power which has paralysed its right . I Sir James Gbaham knows perfedly where the shoe pinches ; ho understands , as well as any cur of all of them , what all the barking and bristling has been about ; and we guess that we shall hear no more of the Factory Bill at all , if the people don ' t call into exercise a power of coercion greater than that of the Dissenting Parsons and thur Leeds bully of the Mercury .

      So Skeaberg Aun Gzoyve&Gqvrtfwp*

      So sKeaBerg aun GzoYve&gQvRtfWp *

      Untitled Article

      4 _ THE NORTHERN STAR , _ j ^—^— — """¦""" ¦ " —— + —¦ " : - ~ " — - """ " — " ' ' " ———— —7 ' — —"""¦""" ' ~ " — —^——^—— . —

      To Tre Editor Of The Morning Advertiser.

      TO TRE EDITOR OF THE MORNING ADVERTISER .

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), June 17, 1843, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct486/page/4/