Current:

Northern Star (1837-1852), 19th November 1842, Edition 3 of 5, Page 7, Untitled Article

Page 7
Page 7
7 of 8

On this page

  • Text (10)
  • 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

      TO THB EPITOB OP THE NORTHERS STAR . Sra —In yom paper of Oct . 1 st , appeared a letter , _ jj _ g ^ ' yf . p ., calling upon the Chartists of England , and of ~ oc > vr& 8 , &Q he * dept-ndendes , to join the Cora Law jepetlert . ** » s s > means to gain the Charter . " ¦ Whether W . P . be in earnest , or -whether he has put out t-. at letter as a feeler , I cannot say , bat I shall take it in good earnest , and , without abase , treat it accordingly-And , first all all , Sir , if W . P . -was my age , and had bad as much to de "with that lying , canting , hypocriticsl , and treacherous lot , as I feave , he would as soon

      join the infernal spirits as a meant to obtain heaven , S 3 join the Whigs to gain the Charter . It is out of sE _ character -with us ; and if I was a landocrat , I th ould snffer my feead to be eut from my body before I ^ rould submit to a repeal of the Corn Laws , without a repeal of the Debt Laws . The landlords baxe sinned in con tracting a National debt ; for exery one knows that the expenses of the state ought to be paid yearly , ? nst in the same -way as the poor rates are paid , yet I Vould not submit to his ruin , through a repeal of the Coin Laws , any more than I submitted to the rnin of the manufacturers through the passing of Peel ' s

      Bill-Did not we foresee the effects of Peel ' s Bill ? Did not we exclaim against the injustice of that measure ? Did not we foresee the manufacturers ruined by hundreds , by that Bili ? and should not we baxe seen the farmers , after selling their cattle to put to the corn and hay money to pay their rent with , trundled into th 3 streets , had not the Parliament passed them the Corn Law ? To be sore we should . Did not we see cloth and blankets fall one-half , and more ? and the manufacturers of those eoods fill the J 3 ils ? and wbat aid we say then ? Why , we said that the man that could do such a thing , that is , contract the circulating medium , without an Equitable Adjustment of all contracts , was ¦ wo rse than a madman , and ought not to be in the king ' s council . Weil , then , will not a repeal of the Cora Laws baxe just the &sme effect on the farmers , aye , and on the landlord too , as Peel ' s Bill had on the manufacturers ?

      To be sure it wuL Xow , in the former case , the labourer did noi get the profit of cheap cloth and blankets . No ; his -wages were lowered . But the boys of fixed income did welL I lit re no occasion to mention their names ; W . P . knows them all as well as I do . And , Sir , surely your correspondent cannot wish to see the same game played oxer again on the farmer , because he ha Been it played on the manufacturer ? No ; that would be rank " free trading" —that would be real whiegsry . _ __ ___

      But , Sir , without any " abuse , " I could not like to see the American , or any other , come into the Hull market with eood corn to sail at four shillings a bushel until the Eneiish farmer be put in a position to compete with him . De . ixerhim from the one-tenth to keep W . P . a church ; from the expence of a standing army , and all the rest of the things ; let him haxe foreign rents and taxes and no more , and adjust his debts , and then you may throw the ports open when you please . " Bat , for God ' s sake , do not want to bay your corn of the American while the English farmers are proxiding and maintaining you a force , not only to protect your mijls and caromerce , but to keep the workies in subjection , and gyre you an opportunity of taking their -work out of their bands by your machinery , and redncing them in their wages , thirty degrees below the freezing point ! ! Wkat , Sir , can W . P . see in the Repealers that he wishes us Xa join them ? For my part I nexer will ; and I am sure no good and well-informed Chartist exer

      will . If W . P- wishes to join the Whigs , I adxise him to go throngh lixeraedge and Heckmondwike to join them ; and be sure to call on the Chartists of these places , and ask them to go and join also 4 but , at the same time , I would adxise him to bold the door in his hard , while he puts the question , lest the answer ahould not suit the nether end of his body ! Young men , Sir , like W . P . whose loxe of liberty outruns their jndgment . and because they are honest , thiiik the Whigs might be , if we were to try them again . But , Sir , they never shall , by my consent , be tried again ! Look at the promises they made before the passing of the Bef orm Bill : "lay aside all minor

      differences cf opinion , " said they : " help us this time ; go help us just to lay the stepping stone ; do help us to just put in tfce wedge , and then when we haxe got in we will open such a breach in the partition wall of corruption , as will let you all in . " I told the Reformers of that day to keep off them ; but somehow they were Whig ™*^ - Well , and how did it end ? Why , Sir , no sooner had they got the " whole Bill , " ( and I wish to God it had been the worst thing they got , ) than they turned round and said , ' * Well , Gentlemen , Radicals , good night , it is all oxer . " "Sow , just look at that I wish , Sir , thai W . P- had been old enough at that time , to understand that aSair ; but the Lixersedge and Heckmondwike people will tell him if he calL

      Well , they got in , and they stopped in nearly ter years , and what did they do ? Why nothing but mischief . And W . P . Sir , may read at his leisur e , then whole history if he please , beginning with the Irish Coercion B ' . ll , increase of the army a d defct , Frost , Williams , and Jones , and right down to the attempted rep ; si c-f the timber duty , which they offered in their dyirg breath ; and then he may ask us to join them . 5 ott , by-the-bye , I haxe no better opinon of tl e Tories ; only this : the Tories want your money , and they tell you they will haxe it , or e ^ they Tr ill blow

      your braixs cut ; but the canting WLigs are always tellmz you eoice fine tale ; but when you feel in your pockets yc-nr money is gone . ' If ever the Whigs be joined to s : e . it will be on the grounds of undoing their b—y dteds . It will be by their coming forth hand sad br ar : to get Frost , Williams , and Jones restored to their families . And , when they do come , they shall come in at the front door , and take their stand as we onier . And I do assure W . P . that they sLall neither be behind ncr before ; for , if behind , they will run way , and if before , they will lead us astray .

      W . P ., Sir , says that " where men haxe a great object to attain , they ought to haxe means commenrerate to tie end . " Well , if these be the means , I give him the good of them ; bnt I would be joined to lord Howick and Company almost , before I would be prexailed oa to join them . But , Sir , W . P . thrnfc-s the Repealers sre not sincere ; lad if the Chartists were to join tbtm , tiey would gire their agitation up . I haxe no doubt but they would , if they saw that the Tories were likely to grant

      the Charttr ; and which the Tories would do rather thin repeal the Corn Laws , foi tfce following reasons -. —First , they would see that if" they repealed the Corn Lvn , and Jsi all other laws stand as tsty ar& , they Would get no rents ; and the Repealers for no other BepeaL Secondly , the landlords see the fucdlord and tiemortcageeready to foreclose ; tbt 7 see tie blacksmith , th = - whee ' . - writht , the joiner , the tailor , tfce grocer , the ihotisater , and 2 . many more come with bills in their h&L-da , a )] wanting paying in Corn at the American price ; est 121 . a lead .

      Now , Sir , can any one suppose that the landlord * * 2 l be such fool 3 , or can W . P . wish them , when he must know that the Chartists offer them far more honourable a = d better tenr * ? To rerx-al the Corn Laws without coming te a compkte sevi ' . cTr . rst , - would tick the farmers' men into the Etrt » t ; ths-r . the farmers , and then the landlord ; and th-n . as W . P . ova , the marufacturfrs will be trundled . Lto tfcesim-t f * r want of customers . >" -w , Sir , surtly W . P . cculd cot -wish to see all t ^ Ls- 0 yes , " bs a iceaKire to gain the Charter , " say ,

      But , Sir , IT W . P . knew as much of the landlords as I do he -srcnld see that they would not haxe their land taken fmm them by a repeal of the Corn Laws , and the m ^' ictsrers will snbmit to stiff duty-btfore they wDl run tLe risk of losing their property , the workies . _ Its lard-ord , ihe fundlord , the mortgagee , the pen-Eoctr , the- jr . air . ifactnrer , and all who live without woriiag know tte xaiue of tie workies ; and before tbsy -would lose them , before they would suffer them to be enfranchised , they would moxe both heaxen and hdL "Wh ^ t , snffer tfce labouring class to make tne k-xz ' . Why , Sir , thfy know , and so does W . P ., that if ' -Le labouring cbsa fcatl the poffer of making tfct li-srs in their own hand , they would not enjoy that power 8 ^ mouths before they began to "want to eat one half cf the fruits cf their own industry . And what , Sir , -weald this do for the idlers ? why , it would just drive thm mad . Before tie would submit to such a

      stite cf things * I will not say that he would bum up E ^ s ' . ind , but Washington , Moscow , St . Dsnnis , China , Aff gL ^ nistsn , and many other places might tremble . The nusufictnrers know that the Charter -should gixe tbe wafting man more food and clothes for tis wa ^ es tksn he has ; ana they know if he got more , some f-iks lEust have Je = s ; and tfcey know that fixed incomes fc'SBi be p ^ id ; and , beside , they with one day to see taeir soEs asd caugbttrs fill those sama places of profit * fcd honour as rhey call it ; atd fco * r c . n that be done ^ ytn let theisbourer haxe his share ? It cannot . Why , t-ta , sbtiid W . P . wi * h ns to j in them , when their ? z > Ttrsl js : d ours are diametrically opposite to each othtr ar . a a * wide apart as Dan is from B-j « heba ?

      Look n :, sir , for help to acy one tut yonr own or ° <* ; Let , shoTe all , nexer look to the Whigs . They » £ a . o = ty tenters j Thty haxe long bellies ! They will pfcTrtbe £ ; iei ; and as they now crucify the poor man m & * * £ t ; 5 , so wouJd they do to Jesus Christ if he * ere ht : e resin . I know we have a deal to contend *| 'b ; but P-cVs Bill is makirg Chartists as fait as ^ tt ' suutts nude Tories ; aye , and it is tumbling the Klcsh , " down in nearly tie same ratio . Some people despair because the land has got into a few Lands , and because they see that they are forbid to * ork on it almost at any price . They see the law made » y t hat few , and thertfore there is no protection . But Derer mir- d r they are on their last legs ; we must not «« ndle them into the street before we are sure that * e can keep the canting Whigs out . When I say "onaie , 1 allude to party : bet I wish no man as a ° nzrii to be drixen into the streets .

      ^ bit , Sir , does W . P . see in the repealers that he 'aits us to j 3 in them ? Does he see riches ? If he ! 5 ! ' ** k * ££ ed to look to them . Do the repealers ^^ 1 ? want cheap com ? If they do , what am 1 to Vvrf *? " ! by th ^ ii organ the Mercury , which adxises BhoDi ^ * 7 re&ders to 8 ° ^^ b ° y P ^ carn l ££ t ll no ^ t- Eit k ° ^ and Tuia ^ de *' 618 ? J sbcmld ta > , * & « all their fuss about cheap corn , if they r *~ **» £ 59 , 0-60 , which they intended to lay cut in anriif n ? ^ k ^ 011 * and bay B P eora to prexent ruin , a m * alond about repeal at the same time ! A nice

      Untitled Article

      set to join ! I would like W . P . to look at the best section of the repealers , the Sturgites ; and just flee whether their plan of electing delegates be agreeable to bis mind . TbeD , again , look at the plug plot Who can tell what the fellowi would haxe doDe , if they had not been put down by some one calling ont the ' Charter" ? But no sooner was tkat word pronounced , than the Whigs , in exery part , as if by magic , flew to the Tories t « assist , nay , to take the lead in putting the plugging down . Just loek at the conduct of those rat-catchers at Huddersfiek ' . I was there , and I feel them stink in . my nose to this day ; and had it not been for the sneer of contempt they were bound to endure from the Tory magistrates , that gaxe me a little relief , I should haxe fallen on the spot . From Hudderefield go to Cleckheaton , Mill Bridge , nay follow them exery where , and you will find them all of a piece .

      W . P , Sir , may join them if fee thinks proper ; but my tongue shall eleaxe to the roof of my mouth , and my hand forget its cunning , before I will . But W . P . talks of more " honourable means . " So he thinks , it seems , that it would be a disgrace to him to join them . It really would , and a defeat too I How could we join the Whigs and keep np our agitation too ? We cannot aerxe two masters . Just in the same degree that we agitate for the repeal , jost ia that same degree we neglect our own afiaira . What we haxe to do is as dear as the sun at noon day .

      We muet agitate for the Charter . We must read tha papers , and we must read them to others . We must explain to them . I know it is hard work to make politicians ; but now that Peel has begun , let us redouble oar Z 33 I , and try if we cannot make them as fast by reasoning , as he can by gixing two pounds of beef to the pensioners instead of one ! We are xery much to blame in reading the papers to ourselves , instead of reading them to others . We should teach the ignorant to know their rights ; the nature and effects of money ; and we ought to teach them to read and write ; and though we are net allowed to teach them the use of arms and the theory of gunnery , yet , I beliexe the law does allow us to teach geography and arithmetic

      But , Sir , if you can but prexail upon W . P . to hold his hand a bit , and just gixe Peel a fair opportunity 6 T paying the interest of the national debt in flour at la . 6 d . per stone , and beef at 3 d . per pound ; and to pay all fixed obligation ! at the same rate , he will haxe no need t » join cfce Whigs , to repeal the Corn-Laws !! We shall haxe the whole country flocking to our standard like doxes to the window . To conclude , if we were to join the Repealers hand and heart , and if they were to stand firm , ( but with W . P . I think they would not , ) and the Tories from the bad opinion they haxe been trained to form of the Chartists , Were to grant a repeal of the Corn-Laws rather than grant the Charter , would W . P . like to stop in the country either with "wreck , " 01 without ? except his heart was steeled np to the brim to pay off old scores . If he would , he is no Chartist

      Could , sir , W . P ., wish to see Tom Lambert , because Tom has been ignorant , or because be bad been led or drixen by his landlord , whoBe mind has been prejudiced against the Charter and all that is good , go to Wakeflsld with 0 * 26 hundred loads of corn to sell , for which he should bring home £ 140 to pay his half-year ' s rent , and return with only £ 60 , only because Jonathan was there i Could be like to see him sell his horse-corn and furniture to make up the rent ? Conld W . P ., in the depth of winter , like to see his wife and children trundled into the streets by the bnms , by order of tbe

      steward , thouch his name be " Jt > hn Bessie" ? He knows that that would be the case all oxer England . Then , loos at the sales almost all in one day to meet the rent day . Where are the buyers , sir ? Why there are none ; no , nor rents either . Then the mortgagee , then the fundholder , then all the private bills ; but stop , there is the soldier , and he needs no process ; be has that in Mb cartridge box . Ay , sir , if W . P . has half an eye , by looking here , he will see as much in half a minute as I , in writing , could tell him in a week !

      Now , I think , 1 haxe said enough to set W- P . a thinking . As Chartists we ought not to wish to see others robbed and ruined , because they haxe helped to rob and ruin us -. ^ that is the doctrine of the Repealers . No , we ought to haxe charity and loxa . It is our duty to do the best we can to put a stop to that system -which first robs one irid then tbe other . It is tbe robber ' s delight to hear those whom he has robbed say , " Well , damn ' em they did not care for us , what reason haxe we to caxe for them '' ? " Oar » go « ds were lowered one-half , and they took no notice ; then why should wejc&re foi them ? ' This is the tyrant's reasoning . Now , sir , let us mini ! our own business . Let us add to our numbers . Let us enlighten each other ' s minds . Lt ; t us shew clearly to e * ch other that it is our interest to get rid of the robbers , and not to rejoice at seeing each other robhed .

      Haxing said enough at this time to conxince W . P . that it will be better to Increase our number by instructing the ignorant than joining tbe Repealers , I remain , air , yours , T . Popplkwell . EUand Edge , Noxembei 5 , 1812 .

      Untitled Article

      TO THE CHARTIST COUNCIL . Nox . 3 rd ., 1842 , English-street , HulL Gentlemen—I beg ta acknowledge the receipt of z letter from your Secretary , dated October 31 ? t , and also to say , that not being aware of haxing gixen arjy offence , er shewn any indxility , I am sorry to find his l-. tter bo ungentlemanly and scurrilous . I beg also to observe that it might probably haxe been as well had you postponed your flourish of triumph till a aore fitting occasion . Tbe following are extracts from his letter : — " When Mr . Beesly ' s challenge was accepted , their hope was that it had been done is good faith . " " They did not anticipate from your tone and bearing thai covert shrinking from the contest wh 5 ch they regret to find manifested in your letter . " "Attempts to get away from the question . " "Touro > j ^ ct in seeking the debate , " ice , To quote all your scurriJous inuendoes I should haxe to copy a great part of your letter .

      You first admit "Mr . Beesley gaxe tbe challenge , and then yon represent me as " seeking Ou debate . " Because I submitted the " conditions ' ' to yonr attention , were they therefore bindiDg en yon ? If not why be scurrilous ? You first desired me to appoint a committee ; I respectfully replied in a letter . Did I not treat yon with tbe respect which is due to a public body ? Why then fling around me bo many unworthy motixes ? Has my moral courage been untried ? Or haxe you a mind to imitate your lecturer in his conciudisg address on my Hotixes ? I haxe yet to learn that yon are the depositories of public xirtue and public principle .

      Yon represent me as if I originated the question of debate—your lecturer gaxe the Eubject himself , namely , " Tbe Repeal of the Corn Laws would not benefit tbe working cla ^ sea , '' and challenged either Mr . Acland or myself to discussion . The only liberty ( if it can be called a liberty 11 tor ^ k , was in putting the subject into an interrogatixe form , thus : " Would the repeal of the corn Lsws benefit the operative classes ? " You haxe , however , changed the question , but with all proper deference , I beg to inform you and the composer of your letter , that you , acting merely as a committee of management , have no power to make such a change . That moment you step ont of yonr legitimate province , you remove the cronnd on which the acceptance of the challenge rests .

      Ton mn > as jnstly introduce tbe Poor L 3 W Bill , the Ten Hours' Bill , or any other bill , as the Franchise . It is not for me to know lie extent o ! power you roay exercise oxer your lecturer , but I mast respectfully decline its recognitioa when extended to myself . If , therefore , - your lecturer bad undertaken to defend a porition net upon Chartist principles , it -would haxe been m -re candid and honourable on yonr part to haxe at once said that for tbe result your lecturer alone is responsible . . Instead of this you attempt to exhibit me as choosing my own ground , in order to elicit a refusal from you , " and hereby gixe me an appearance of triumph . Upon this rest all your scurrilous attacks upon my motixes and principles .

      When yout lecturer had xauntirgly gixsn the challenge I accepted it on condition that he would coaSr . e bis attention to the sulj ^ ct If you doubt this ask your chairman . He said " his committee would be ready to make the arrangements , " which reply I understood as an Effirmatixe that he would do bo ; and therefore in my arrangements with you I hope you wiil not deem it disrespectful if I confine you abo to the subject In doing so you fcsxe imagined yourstlvcs treated as children . If you think so , I cannot help it , and 1 am sorry my meacin ? should have been so much misapprehended . Your lecturer placed you in that position if you deem it derogatory , and I must leave you to settle this grievance with

      him-You do see , however , the horn of tbe dilemma on which he would have teen impaled ; and in anticipation you make a sudden plunge to avert his fate . On this subject J hare only to observe that public challenges should be more carefully glxen , and then they would be attended with more consistency and less regret Mr . Beesley challenged me on one subject , you propose another . Am I to understand this as a specimen of good faith ? You might haxe inferred , had you rtflected a moment , that I would not allow myself to be thus " trail , d . " Whether a repeal of the corn laws should be mixed np with party politics , is a question which may admit latitude of opinion . On this eubject , however , my own xiews are settled . Hence you will perceive , that I . am disinclined to allow you to dictate what eourse I am to pursue apart from the subject gixen by ^ r . Bf etsly in the Lodge .

      The spirit of yonr letter woula , if it eojuld , frown me into your will ; ' and se locg as yon exemplify this spirit towards those who may not receive all tbe nostrums of your lectur ers , though yon profess nm ' xersal liberty , yon practice the worst of mental despotism . You wish to be treated with " gentlemanly ccurte * y . " This request is needless ; though the animus cf your letter displays little of this essential iu ^ rtuient to all friendly interchange of thought and opinion , I am , gentlemen , A well wisher to yon , and all the operatives of this realm , ( Signed ) Robert Fieth .

      Untitled Article

      THE ANSWER OF THE COUNCIL . Hull , November 7 th ., 1842 . SIB , —I am instructed by those with whom 1 have the honour to act , officially to acknowledge the receipt of your last , and officially thus to reply : — The letter to which youta is in answer was not the letter of our Secretary , bui that of the body from whom it professed to emanate , namely , tbe Hull Council of the Charter Association , drawn np and agreed to at a regular meeting of this body , and signed on our behalf and at our command by the person appointed by us for this purpose . Therefore , if that letter had contained anything either ' ungentlemnly' or ' scurrilous , ' it would , in our opinion , haxe been more gemlemanly on your part , to haxe attributed the want of courtesy ta the proper quarter , and not to the indixidunl whose

      signature was appended to the document Yet , notwithstanding the isolated quotations which you make from that letter , and which you are plea > ed to call' scurrilous inuendoes , ' you baxe signally failed in producing a single ' ungentlemanly , ' a single scurrilous' expression . If the term Mirusndo' ba by us correctly understood , it signifies a distent notice , a hint , or an insinuation , and these are commodities in which the Chartists generally do not deal , leaving thiB kind of traffic to their political opponents who claim to be ' the sole depositories of public virtue and public principle' as they are of political power . We consider , moreoxer , that the charge of scurrility comes with a peculiarly bad grace from a gentleman who can so

      unceremoniously charge those who may differ in opinion from him and his « nostrums , ' with ' professing unixersal liberty , but practising the worst of mental despotism ; ' and were recrimination our purpose , we might justly challenge you to produce any expression from our whole correspondence , as ' ungentlernanly' in its tone , or bo ' scurrilous' in its tenor as the passage to which Wb haxe taken the liberty of thus calling your attention . But recrimination is not our object Our wish ia to get you' up to the scratch' upon terms so plain and tangible , that the merits of the question , in all its bearings , may be fairly and honestly brought before the people , in order that they may come to a just decision .

      You appear extremely wroth that we should have characterised you as ' seeking tbe debate ; ' but if you had not sought it you would not have founu it ; for even Mr . Robert Firth , ' Corresponding Secretary of the Hull anti-Monopoly Association , ' is not of sufficient importance in the eyes of the Chartist public to be honoured by them with a personal challenge , unless , as in this instance , it is ' of his own seeking . ' But if he thinks proper to * pick up the gauntlet' whenever it m » y ba thrown down to the anti-Corn Law Leagueif be thinkb proper to become the champion of the ' nostrums' which are palmed upon the public under the sounding title of ' free trade '—he may rest assured , whether he opines it is ' of his seeking * or no , or that his ' moral courage' will be pretty often put to the test

      We are completely at a loss to know what your ' flourish of triumph' can allude to , unless it be by the xaunting' boast of 'impaling' your opponent upon ' the horns of a dilemma . ' 1 ' which nexer existed save in your own imagination . To your term ' composer , ' which you baxe dignified with all the importance of bslf-tert , we have no objection , sax * that it ought in all fairneu to haxe been expressed in the plural . We shall , for this once , reply to your queries ; gently reminding you , however , that although we offered to consider objections , we made no promise to answer questions . 'No . ' 'We deny it * 'YesI' 'We neither Jid nor intended I" 'Of that yon are the best judge , or * when did your trumpeter die ? ' take either answer you may like the best But your next question , containing something like an * inuendo * deserves a more lengthened reply . You ask , ' Or haxe yon a mind to imitate your lecturer in his concluding address on my motixes ?"

      Sir , we are always inclined to pass lightly over observations whieh may drop from a speaker in the heat of debate ; we do not feel justified in too nicely weighlug or in too severely criticising every expression which may fall from his lips ; but when we find a man Bitting down deliberately to pen a sentence like tbis , there is no necessity for questioning bis * motixes . ' These become too apparent for questioning , too palpable for doubt Our 1 cturer nexer once alluded to your motixes ! but when he found you changing the

      question ; when he found you stepping out bt your ' legitimate proxince ; ' when he fouDd you not confining your attention to the subject ; ' when you travelled out of your way foi no other apparent purpose than that of accusing the absent and slandering the imprisoned , he did then administer a little deserved castration , never indeed questioning yonr motives by gixing a shrewd guess at youT trade . If , therefore , you felt sore under the lash , you may console yourself with the reflection that tbis also was ' of your own seeking , " and that neither we nor our lecturer were in the least to blame .

      Haxing thus dismissed the charge of scurrility , and baxlng thus replied to your questions , we now proceed to consider your reasoning , if that term can with justice be applied to any portion of the assertions contained in yonr letter . You quote a part , and be it remembered only a part , of Mr . Beesley ' s challenge , and lest you should ' infer' this also to be an ' inuendo' we beg to assure you that we bring it as a serious and positixe charge . The words of the challenge so ' xauntingly' accepted , as copied by the short-baud writer who took notes on the

      occasion , were ' whilst the institutions of our country retain their present basis , I deny that the mere repeal of the Corn LawB would benefit tbe working classes ; and I defy and hereby challenge either Mr Acland , or this gentleman , or any other member of the anti-Cern-Law League to prove that it would . ' Here then is the challenge which Mr . Beesley gaxe and which you accepted . Haxe you the ' moral courage' to maintain your ground ? or dare you again display' that covert shrinking from the contest , ' that ' attempt to get away from the question , ' which year fint letter evinced and which your last confirms .

      Sir , you shall not shuffle out of thia discussion without proclaiming to the world that you are destitute of that' moral courage' of which you so loudly boast ; for exen taking tbe question upon your own shewing , xiz : would the repeal of the Corn Laws benefit the working classes ? ' you haxe no right to clog that with conditions or limitations about what shall or what shall not be excluded ; for if our Jectnrer , in maintaining the negative of exen that proposition , could satisfactorily shew that' the limitation of the franchise , ' or exen tbe New Poor Law Bill , or any other measure now in operation , would debar tbe working c-aases from a participation of that benefit which , under other circumstances , they might hope to share , ire have yet to learn by what law of discussion he can possibly be Bhut out from making use of thia fair and legitimate argument

      As you haxe not thought proper to object to any of our other propositions , with the single exception of 1 the subject for discussion' we conclude that you haxe no objection to offer ; and we again ask you ' wiil you come forward and maintain your ground on the terms in which the challenge was gixen ; ind accepted ?' Wb haxe no desire that the word ' franchise be introdneed into the question , but we will nexer bt consenting parties to any proposition by which a legitimate arjjumtDt should be ( xc ) uded ; and we have axcry poor opinion indeed of that " good faith" which would only allow one side of a subject to be heard . In conclusion , we wish most distinctly to express that we haxe no intention of gixing personal ofKii . ce ; but iu this m ; it » r we can only regard you in the lkht of a pOit'cal opponent ; and while we treat you with all the courtesy due to this character , we cannot allow private f-eliDgB cf personal regard to interfere with the discharge of a political duty .

      I have the honour to be , Sir , On behalf , and by command of the Hull Chartist Council , Yours respectfully , W . J . Hollidat , Sec To Mr . Robt Firth . &c .

      Untitled Article

      TO THE CHARTISTS © F SHEFFIELD . " He who allows oppression shares the crime . " Brother and Sister Democrats , —We consider it our isjpts . ative dnty to make this appeal to you in behalf of the champions of our rights aad liberties . Tbe time is now arrived to prove how deserving we are of the prixileges , for the attainment ef which we are struggling , by the support und protection we afford tu the advocates of onr common causa Despotism , assisted by its worthy colleague , base and black-hearted treachery , haB made a bold and powerful effort to crush the nioxement , by depriving the peoDle

      of tUfcir best and tried friends ; amonp others , your two UTiflinching ' adxocates , George Juiian Harney and Saml . Parkes , who , torn from their homes and families by the myrmidons of power , were committed by ministerial despots on the evidence of tbe traitor and renegade Griffin , to take their trial at the late Special Commission on the miserably false charge ff conspiracy . These , y&ur friends , ( in common with their brother patriots charged aa being " conspirators" ) exercised the right allowed them by the law of traxersing their trials to the next March assizsa .

      For exercising this , their constitutional right , they will be plundered by the harpies of the law , to the amount of from s x to eight ponuda each , in the shape of traverse fees alune ! asd this infamous extortion must be submitted to , otherwise our friends will be liable to imprisonment for non-payment , before they are tried on the charge brought against them by the Downing-Etreet " Conspirators . " Of course , there will be other unavoidable expencea to be provided for independent of that , which , we think , ( whatever our persecuted brothers may decide upon for themselves ) viz . the employment of counsel for the defence .

      We would not have troubled you with this appeal , relying upon your patriotism to find the necessary funds in sufficient time , but that our brethren are menaced with another Special Commission ! Well the factions ktow that the perjured evidence upon which they rest their case would not avail them , if unprejudiced juriea were the arbiters between the accusers and the defenders of democracy . Well they know that as soon as Parliament sh ^ ll meet , corrupt as that House is , it will be compelled to listen to the demands of our persecuted brothers for justice , and to witness the unmasking of those liberticidial Judges who baxo polluted the judgment-seat , and retder >; d " the majeB ' . y of . the law" a mockery and a

      Untitled Article

      byword . To prexent aa far , as in their power lies the unveiling of the true conspiracy , and the real conspirators , the factions have given the glgnal , and their vile organs from the daily Times and Morning Chronicle down to those drivelling things the Independent and Iris , have joined in the yelping chorus , of "thelifcelihood , the probability , and almost certainty , " Ac . of a winter assize—another " special commission" to be held before Christmas . The Dublin Monitor avows that this additional Special Commission is to be for the purpose of procuring the conviction of " Feargus O'Connor and the other Chartists who have traversed , " before Parliament shall assemble .

      Of all the curses that afflict our conntry the existing newspaper press is the most horrible : it is , with two or three noble exceptions / th e vile pander to despotism , the bitter and relentless foe of truth and justice . The efforts of its degraded conductors to afford a colourable pretext for the bold act of tyranny which they tell us Is contemplated by the ruling faction , to procure tbe conviction of our leaders , must disgust all honest men . But shall they do this non-opposed by you ? Your voices raaaed in condemnation of so despotic and unconstitutional an act , may yet scare them from their intended infamy ; but more than this must be done ! The necessary fund * must be instantly raised ; bo that if our friends are to be brought to trial in December , they may be prepared with the pecuniary means of defence . .

      Tbe men for whom we plead are ¦ worthy of your support ; the name of Julian Harney is known wherexer the banner of Chartism waveB . and is associated with exery struggle of the people for their rights during the last four years . Samuel Parkes is known to you , tbe men of ShtfiL' 14 , for his unflinching patriotism and steady &' herence to your cause . When the day of . trial arrives—when honest patriotism shall confront triumphant tyranny , we haxe no fear that they will do their duty . Do you do youra . If a winter assize is to be held it is expected to take place early in December . There is no time to be lost Up , then , men and women of Sheffield—exert all your energies , and proxe you are worthy of your ri ghts , by supporting these who dare defend themselves . : Signed in behalf of the Defence Fund Committee . Samuel Clayton , Secretary . Council Room , Fit ; Tree Lane , November 14 th , 1842 .

      Untitled Article

      TO THE TRADES , AND WORKING CLASSES GENERALLY , OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND .

      Fellow Workmen , —Most , orall of you are aware , that in the beginning of September last a committee was appointed by the Smiths of Manchester , to endeavour to raise a fund to conduct and defray the expenses attending the defence of Mr . Alexander Hutchinson . Tbe circumstances originating his arrest have been previously laid before you , so that any lengthy comment from us will he unnecessary . Suffice it to say , that at the Trades' Delegate Meeting , held in thd Hall of Science , Manchester , he was appointed by the unanimous voice of the meeting to preside over their deliberations , which ultimately led to his arrest and his

      committal for trial at the late Liverpool as& ' z 3 . To the talent and influence of the counsel we employed , though at an enormous expense , we are chiefly indebted for the favourable termination of his trial , which , under other counsel and circumstances , would , we believe , have been attended with aerioua results . And us our treasurer has been obliged , by the necessity of the case , to advance a considerable sum on our credit , we take the present opportunity of issuing our report for your inspection , under tho impression that you will not stand still and see us sacrifice our means without one effort to assist up .

      REPORT OF THE INCOME AND EXPENDITURE . Income , £ . a . d . William Epton ... 0 10 John Banks ... 1 0 0 William Gerrard 0 1 0 Walter Phaup ... 1 0 0 A Friend ... Thomas Chiid ... 1 0 0 Robert Froggatt . 0 1 6 A Friend ... 10 0 A Friend ... 0 1 0 John Child ... 0 10 0 Robert Stones ... 0 1 0 CharleB Jones ... 0 13 0 Joseph Clarke ... 0 10 Henry Coffey ... 0 , 8 0 James II'Donald 0 10 Wm . Me George 0 8 0 Wifeofdo . ... 0 1 0 EdwnrdRogers ... 0 8 0 John Roberts ... 0 1 0 David Huberts ... 0 8 0 Juhn Francis ... 0 0 6 James Kelshaw 0 8 0 William Wood ... 0 0 6 Thomas Grayson 0 8 0 William Cook ... 0 0 6 Edwin Banks ... 0 5 0 Peter Ligntfoot .. 0 0 6

      Divid Lewis ... 0 5 0 Peter Johnton ... 0 0 6 T . Stanynought ... 0 5 0 Robert Price ... 0 0 6 Joshua Wonnall 0 6 0 John Goffcsry ... 0 0 6 Wm . Corns ... 06 6 Peter Hart ... 0 0 6 A Friend ... 0 5 0 William Parry ... 0 0 6 James Crawley ... 0 5 0 George Davis ... 0 0 6 Wm . Robinson ... 0 5 0 Thomas Acton ... Richard Byrora ... 0 5 0 Samuel Hughes .. 0 0 3 Isaac Gi . 'Iow ... 0 7 0 A Boy ... ... 0 0 2 Wolverton Smiths 0 10 0 The foregoing London do . 0 7 3 comprise : . . '¦ . Edinburgh do . 0 5 0 Smiths of Man-E . Quarltrou « h ... 0 7 0 Chester , ice , . ^ . 18 16 2 John Hardman ... 0 5 0 Bellhouse ' a Spin-Leeds Railway ... 0 6 9 ners ... ... 0 15 0

      John Donlevy ... 0 5 0 Glass Slakeis : David Dick ... 0 5 0 Aaron Chadwick 0 0 6 Richard Wood ... 0 5 6 Joatph Lythgoe .. 0 0 6 Matthew Dunn ... 0 4 0 William Sparks .. 0 Q 6 Daniel Me Avoy 0 4 0 Goorge RowIansonO 0 6 John Nelson ... 0 3 6 Richard Rosten ... 0 0 6 Thomas Janes ... 0 3 6 Sharp ' s Brass George 8 tott ... 0 3 0 Room .., ... 0 9 6 James Yates ... 0 3 0 A few Spinners , Henry Parr ... 0 3 0 Ancoat ' B-Iane ... 1 7 0 Wm . Edgley ... 0 3 0 Society of Metal John Ashwortb 0 2 6 Planers ... I 5 1 R . Wilkinson ... 0 2 6 Two Country James Haslem ... 0 2 6 Friends ... 0 6 9 Wm . Faldon ... 0 2 6 Geo . Ashworth .... 0 0 9

      Joseph Spa ... 0 2 6 Buller fc Willi ' s Richard Nixon ... 0 2 fi Shop ... ... 0 12 3 A Friend ... 0 3 0 Bolton Railway ... 0 14 0 Henry Bedgood 0 3 0 A few Friends , John Edgar ... 0 2 0 by J . R . ... 0 13 0 Wm Birtlea ... 0 3 6 Sharp ' s Mule Thomas Gittens 0 2 6 Room ... ... 14 0 Daniel Birtlea ... 0 3 0 Do . Engineers ... 0 9 0 J . Quarltrough ... 0 3 6 Wheelwrights & John Yates ... 0 2 0 Blacksmiths ' George Wrigley 0 2 0 Society ... 1 0 0 Joseph Benton ... 0 2 0 Mechanics' So-Joseph M'Cabe ... 0 2 6 ciety ... ... 9 3 5 Wm . Seddon ... 0 2 6 Tailors' Society 4 0 0 Thomas Tickle ... 0 2 6 Painters' Society 3 0 0 Charks Nelson ... 0 2 0 — - James Rvan ... 0 2 6 Total Income 43 13 8

      John Metsom ... 0 2 0 - Richard Rbstern 0 10 expenditure . Thomas Naylor ... 0 10 Friend Mitchell 0 10 Book and Pen ... 0 10 William Raven ... 0 1 0 Printing ... ... 2 5 0 Joseph Taylor ... 0 1 0 Returned a few P . Hi « i ? inbotham 0 10 Spinners , An-Job Briekhall ... 0 10 coat ' e-lane .... 17 0 Charles Greaves .. 0 1 0 Attorney and James Barber ... 0 1 0 Counsel ... 40 0 0 A Friend , W . P . 0 1 0 Witneses ... 11 10 0 George Daakin ... 0 10 Datamation ... 0 19 0 H >> nry Pattison ... 0 10 Mr . Hutchinson .. i 11 9 James Russell ... 0 1 0 Printing 2 , 000 Thomas Smilh ... 0 1 0 R « p » rt 8 ... 1 16 1 John Brown ... 9 1 0 ' — Joseph Robinson 0 10 Total .. 62 9 10 John Cooper ... 0 10

      You will perceive , by the foregoing report , that there is an actual deficiency of £ 19 , which our treasurer has been obliged to advance , owing to the attorney , Mr . Bent , absolutely refusing to proceed with the case until he was paid the whole a mount , which circumstance caused the extra expense of a jaurnoy t » Liverpool . The amount paid to the attorney for conducting the case through , you will , no doubt , think far too much , bnt it is very far from the sum beat first demanded ; his first charge was near £ 100 , add to which , the time and expenses of fourteen witnesses to Lancaster , { the assizes being first announced fur f-hat plac «/ for about six or ekht days at the sum generally paid on such occasions , and you will find tkat £ 200 would scarcely cover it , ta say nothing of the x < .-ry serious loss sustained

      by our friend , Mr . Hutchinson . We succeeded , howover , in reducing the attorney ' s expense , by sending a deputation to explain to him our embarrassed position , and the trouble we were subject to in raising even the amount we had then on hand ; hs felt , or appeared to fe i , for our situation , and reduced his ebarge to £ 60 , and at a subsequent interview to £ 40 , which sum we were compelled to agTeeto , or-wholly to abandon the case , and which he uIMruately demanded at Liverpool before he would proceed with the case . The subsequent announcement of the assfzes being held at Liverpool was another gieat advantage to our cause , which together with the honorable and praiseworthy conduct of our witnesses , ( to whom we beg to return . our sincere thanks ) greatly contributed to diminish the expenditure , so that with other economical arrangements the whole defence will be cleared off for about £ 62 .

      We haxe therefore to appeal to your benevolence in behalf of onr deficiency—not upon any political grounds , because our case is entirely a trade question—our delegate was not Bent to the meeting to represent-the ' Chartist smiths of Manchester , nor any other particular party ; he was sent as the representative of the general body , who , like all other public bodies , profess all shades of opinion . And as tbe trades' delegates elected him as their chairman , we feel that we have a strong moral claim upon the sympathies of the working classes , and particularly the trades , to which claim we hope you will give a hearty and cheerful response , so that by banonrablyclearing off every liability , and reinstating our victim in his former position amongst us we may BtiH secure his valuable services , and stimulate others to follow the same praiseworthy course , until every abuse of which we justly complain be swept from the face of tbe earth . .

      You ¦ will also perceive , upon e- " £ aanning the report , that but few of the trades who had delegates at the meeting have yet come forward to assist us ; bo that the expense has fallen heavily upon the members of our own body , to whom we b eg to express our grateful acknowledgements , and hope , that by their praiseworthy example the trades "who b ^ Te n < & yet subscribed will

      Untitled Article

      be stimulated lib >^ rallj to cc-operate to wards liquidating our debt . . In conclusion , wf beg inoat respectfully to return our heartfelt thanks to the trades who hav « . so liberally supported our case , a . ud also to the various workuhops whose names appear among the contributors , and beg to assure them , in tba name' of oar constituents , that should any public calamity or similar misfortune befal them , the support which they have rendered will be returned with obeerfutaess and gratitude . Your ' s very respectfully , Thb Committee . Committee Room , October , 30 , 3842 .

      N . B . —The committee will in future meet every Saturday evening only , at the Olympic Taveea , Stephenson ' 8 Square , from half-past seven to half-past nine o ' clock , when the delegates appointed by the other trades are requested to attend . Each trade subscribing to the fund is requested to send a delegate to sit on the committee , at the conclusion of whose labours a final report "will be issued .

      Untitled Article

      ESSAY ON THE PRESENT SYSTEM , BTi

      JOHN WATKINS . PART IV . " The time Is out of joint { O cursed spite That ever I was born to set ifc right" —ifamfcl . The present age may be characterised tbe selfish age — -it is the moat mercenary—the meanest . Every man seems to think but of himself alone . 'We are ephemera —beings of a day . To lose money is to lose friends , health , reputation , everything—what wonder that parents themselves should love their gold more dear than their children—that they should see them starve and without relief !

      Poverty is rendered criminal by law—it is also bylaw rendered the inevitable lot of the industrious manynot a chance is left for their escape , and when they are driven into the toil , their condition is made more unendurable than that of an Algerine slave—they are treated with an inhumanity of which the Turks would be ashamed . The Turks < why they treat their dogs much better than we treat our aged and inflrni fathers and mothers . Pleasure or profit is all eur pursuit , and can we expect those who are bent on pleasure , to stop at the cries ol pain ? no , they will increase another ' s pain if thereby they can increase their own pleasure—and those who pursue profit are still more callous , more brutal ; the groans of the victims may annoy them , may vex them , but will never soften them . They have

      no consideration for their own bouIs and bodits , not even for their own business characters . Our manufacturers have done much by their dishonest practices to dishonour the credit of the country , to forfeit the custom of other countries ; but what care they ?—ao long as they gobble up ft hasty fortune for themselves they would ruin trade itself , and forestall the fortunes of all whe have to follow . They aro devoid of patriotism and of philanthropby . All principle , all fueling , they sacrifice to the love of pelf . The bloom and innocence of cbildhosd , the strength and spirit of manhood , the very ptiace and resignation of old age—all are made merchandize of . Great was the outcry against the African slave trade , while all the while a slave trade was rising up , was being carried on by those who were

      loudest in that cry . A slavery of the whites , enough to make black turn white in comparison . Surely the first duty of every sincere slave-emancipator was to emancipate the slaves at home . But these were the slaves that they thcmselvea had made , and instead of doing that , they next made heathens of them , while at the same time they were sending out missionaries to convert the heathen in foreign lands , who indeed are the better Christians . Was it not of snob , as these that Christ spoke when be said , " Ye hypocrites ! first cast but the beam from your own eye before you can see clearly to-pluck out the mote fromyour brother . s . " Sendyeur missionaries not to the plains of Hindostan , not to the

      wilds of Southern Africa , but into your own factory mills ; let them prexent the sacrifice of children to your idols ; send them into yonr mines ; but they durst not venture there ; the very police dare not descend into those hell-holes , where boys and girls , and pregnant women crawl ou their bellies like serpents , amid darkness and damp , where rabbits could not burrow , nor blind moles creep , where no living creature but the toad in its cold stone is ever found . Money is not raised to emancipate them , to convert them ; no , but mon ^ y is made of their slavery , their heathenism ; and hundreds of thousands of pounds are sent across the sea to be spent in waste time ; for what better can we call it when we read that no convert is made but at the cost

      of a thousand pounds per man ; and bow are converts made ? Why , they are made drunk , and then they acknowledge themselves Christians , but relapse into Hindooism again as soon as they become sober . Our privileged classes ( fine folks !) lavish all their love , all their religion , all their charity on other countries—not on their own . English charity is never found at home ; it roams all the world over ; it is a vagrant charity . Oh , call it home ; let it visit the unfurnished hovels where industry sits naked and famishing—its very tools pawned for food—where piety broods over its wants and woes , its very bible sold—where innocence is suffering -worse famishment than ever guilt endured . Se 6 the once happy family leaving a once contented home , and wandering desolate despised into the streets ,

      exposed to the cold wind , and to the colder sneers of the world-going wealthy . In vain do they cravethe refuse of the rich man ' s table . There are boards bung up in tivery direction , not like the crosses which in former times pointed the pilgrim to tha monasteries where he was refreshed without money and without price ; but these boards are more like gibbets , and , in direct opposition to the Word of God , they request , earnestly request the public in no case ( mark that J ) to give alms —where then must the destitute go ?—what refuge is for thtin ?—the hostile!—they enter , and the husband is sundered frem his wife , the children are torn trom their parents , the ties of nature are rudely rent , and the whip of authority is put into the bands of brutal men , who think that they best do their duty , that they

      most fulfil their office , when they act with the greatest inhumanity and cruelty . What wonder that many actually prefer death to such a life , for it in a life of hard toil and hard . fare—that many prefer & prison to a bnstile , ana break the law to qualify themselves—and that consequently there is a supposed necessity for more new prisons , or for the enlargement of the old—that madhouses are on the increase , and that the corners of churchyards are filled with suicides ? Some enlist , some emigrate , some are transported for forced crimes ; but the great majority die heartbroken in the land that gave them life , but denied them a living—in a land that abounds with the means of supporting life , but it is a load which the accursed system is fast turning into a Golgotha—a land of skulls . How many die

      of diseases induced by famine ! They pass under the name of low fevers—but they are deaths by Btaxvation ; and England is the only land where such deaths knowingly occur . How many , even now while I tell it , are dying in despair—murdered by the system that should succour and sustain ? Let us select one cose , —not the case of one , but of thousands—I might say of millions —the case of a honest , hard-working man with a laTge family , who having spent all his strength , bestowed all his skill in the support of Church and State , is left at ' last in his hour of need neglected by both , and laid on bare boards , without clothing or covering ( all having gone for food , and gone in vain ) , fevered with care

      and anxiety , -wanting medicines—but not able ta obtain the common necessaries of life—wanting rest , tut ever mom awakened by the cries of his buffering children , he sinks , with no prospect before him but damp walls , dirt , and vermin . Instead of Gospel consolations , he hears the sobs of his little ones , and the wailing of a helpless , hopeless wife : he cannot sleep ; he cannot die in peace , for his last moments are troubled—are tortured with the agonizing thought of what must become of his widow and orphans , and as his eyes grow dimmer , as his breath gnspa shorter , as his pulse beats fainter , shapes ariBe to his delirious view , —his own children appear like spectres danciug and howling atound his corpse .

      Ah , England , with all its wealth , is but a desert island to the unemployed poor . They suffer like men besieged in a citadel with all supplies cut off—like men at sen in a ship out of provisions ; but in those cases all are sufferers alike , the last biscuit is shared equally —with us , on the contraiy , one class , the idle , is rioting amid every superfluity , while another , the industrious , is famishing before their very eyts . The conduct of the upper classes in this country resembles that of wild Indians daucing and singing around their victims

      at the stake . Our class legislators have grasped all aud they gripe all—the more their means increase , the less consideration have they for those v ? hose means , by a natural consequence , decrease—and yet they can ride in their carriages to church and putting on a demure aspect repeat the responses and say— " He who bath an abundance of this world ' s goo-l , aud kuowetb , tria brother to be in need and yet shuteth up his bowels of compassion from his brother , how dwelleth the love of God in him ? " Yes , our pious aristocracy can " kneel and pray "—I ' ve seen ' em dot ( To be continued in our next . )

      Untitled Article

      Figures of Speech . —At a festival recently given to a few friends by Mr . Rouse , the enterprising and worthy proprietor of the Eagle Tavern , City-road , Mr . Campbell , of the Grecian Saloon , made the following witty allusions to the newspaper pres 9 : — " May ' the very Age and body of the Times' be the Advertiser aud the Herald of the best News to ' the # reat Globe itself , and all that , it inherits , ' and particularly to the Subjects of the British Queen ! May thePost bring a Courier with the Dispatch ot lightning to each rising - ? un , with intelligence to gladden the heart of Old England I May theEvEN-1 N 6 Stab ( recently risen a ' Star of ' Hope' to an

      oppressed people and be-dimmed country ) ever be the pride of honest , straightforward , worthy hearted John Built May the British Standard of benevolenoe , with ' Argus eyea , ' see and Record this as an Era of truth , virtue , aad universal philanthrqpy . May charity be an Examiner into , and an Observer of poverty and distress I May the Polar or Northern Star oontiuue to shed its illumining influence on this long-bonighted land i—shining with itB evening contemporary , the ' Gemini' of the political heaven of freedom ! And may the Charter be as it were , the Tablet ovl whieh the Spectator may gaze with delight , while our Patriot shall for ever Chronicle the gloyy and liberty of the British Press /"

      Untitled Article

      Anti-Malthusiaks . —Last week , eight persons accidentally met at the New Inn , Helston , whose children , when added together , amounted to the extraordinary number of ninety-six . None of them had fewer than eight children , and the bj&hejt number was sixteen . —Weil Briton ,

      Untitled Article

      NOTTINGHAM COUNTY GAOL . Notwithstandincf the charges publicly made by tha debtors in Nottingham County Gaol againat the gaoler and magistrates , the castigations that have been bestowed upon them by the press , the voluntary offers of the editors of the Nottingham Revieto , that their columns were' open to receive any counter-statement these authorities thought proper to make to the grave charges against them ; they still maintain a determined —we had almost said a criminal—silence , t 3 the charges of extortions and other illegal practices ol the gaoler , and $ ie sanction and protection afforded to that funtionary ' s dealings with one portion of the pri « soirers and oppression of the others , by the visiting magistrates .

      If the charges brought against tham are false , why not rebut them ? If they are true , how long is justice to be delayed , or denied to the suffering debtors t Their first memorial bears date the 23 rd of September ; their second , on the 30 th ; their remonstrance ou the 10 th of October . Still tbe intolerable grievances are allowed to continue . Dsbtors are crowded together ia felons' cells—their health impaired , their lives placed in imminent peril!—the surgeon debarred , aa he states , by the existing rules , from supplying necessary food and restoratives ; and the poor debtors are deprived of air and exercise , which the more wealthy are allowed to take without restriction , as all undoubtedly ought to be permitted to do . The viBiting magitrates shrink from the specific charges brought against them , but v ? hat have tbey done in lieu of meeting them ? Let their annual report , made at the Nottinghamshire adjourned quarter sessions , holden at Southwell on the 27 th Oct . answer the question . We copy the following from the Nottingham Review , of the 4 th instant : —

      " The visiting justices reported the management of the prison to be excellent , and the discipline good . Tracts are distributed amongst the prisoners , divine service regulatly performed , and the rules prescribed by law strictly adhered to . " Amazement stands aghast , to find such a statement made in the face of the unredressed complaints of the poor debtors ! The management of the prison is excellent , with felons' cells crowded with poer and starving debtors ! The discipline good , -with extortion and illegality depriving men of their health and placing their lives in jeopardy !! Tracts distributed in place of food !!! and divine service regularly performed to men whose minds are writhing under a knowledge and conviction of the wrongs they are enduring III ! A pretty state of things certainly . What must have been the feelings of these injured men on reading such palpable falsehoods ? From the very men who silently decline to redress or rebut the manifold grievances they have so repeatedly and respectfully set forth ? They may better be conceived than described , and gave rise immediately to the following requisition : — " TO THE VISITING MAGISTRATES OF THE GAOL 0 » THE COUNTY OF NOTTINGHAM . " We , the undersigned debtors , confined in the above prison , respectfully request an interview this day with the visiting magistrates en matters concerning the rules and regulations enforced herein , and on other business . ¦ " .--. ¦ " William Kslk . Edward Leach , John Shillceck . William Richards . John Slack . - ' Thomas Cotton . James Denham . John Harper . William Boot Thomas Maxfleld . Heuty Stephens . JohnWass . Richard Hanker . Robert Patterson . " County Gaol , Nottingham , Nov . 6 , 1842 . "

      The required interview did not take place , The magistrates were not to be seen . No , they knew well that their annual or quarterly report , whichever it might be , was a gross and scandalous imposition ; and iiiBtead of "the rules presented by law being strictly adhered to , " they are unblushingly evaded , and the violation of them by the gaoler openty sanctioned by the visiting magistrates , inflicting thereby great part of the grievances of which the debtors so justly , but , at present , uselessly complain . The debtors have taken another step towards obtaining a redress of their grievances . They have

      transmitted a memorial to Sir James Graham , the Secretary of State for the Home Department , in which , as ia commonly this . case when justice is denied , and such deuial pertinaciously persisted in , redress of further grievances is reqaired , than those which have hitherte met the public eye , and shows the tremendous stretch of irresponsible power that is exercised by country justices , unrestrained by any fixed law , and calls loudly for the humane interference of Parliament , to close the door by a general legislative enactment against the temptation that exists for the exercise of the vindictivenesa and caprice of magistrates , gaolers , and . turnkeys . ;

      In this memorial , not only is it prayed that the 2 nd and 3 rd of Victoria , cap . 56 , be enforced , in order to abolish the gaoler ' s , dealings with the prisoners , and the 4 th Geo . IV . chap . 64 ., that the debters shall occupy one ward , distinct from criminal offenders , bnt it presents also in detail many of the grievances which result frem the ° non-observance of the laws now in force , from which we make the following observations : — It appears that the surgeon is prevented , or states that he is , from administering such food and restoratives

      to invalids as he knows and admits they require and ought to have , without subjecting them to twenty-one , out of the twenty-four hoars , Military confinement in an inhospitable garret , dignified with the title of a hospital though , in fact ,. more resembling a sepulchre to receive their dying breath rather than a place calculated for : their restoration ; and this , too , in cases where air and exercise are allowed to be imperatively necessary , as well as more and better food . One of the memorialist * , who has experienced this treatment , truly observes , it ia a course of proceeding calculated to increase rather than ameliorate their sufferinga \

      They require also a revision of the dietary table , stating , as their reason , that the only food now allowe * viz : —one pound of bread per day to each debtor , is insufficient to sustain life for a lengthened period , or to preserve health under any circumstances . They pray , if it is ultimately found expedient to annex the misdemeanour war 3 in future to tbe debtor ' s prison , and to really constitute a part thereof , that , the transport and other criminal offenders be removed therefrom , the lofty walls that now divide it from the debtor ' s yard be removed , that the inmates have access to each other in the night to the Common room , to assist in case of illness , and to be locked up at the same hour , as Is now the practice in the debtor ' s prison , and not at an earlier hour , as is new the case , and that it may form , in fact , essentially a part of the debtors' prison , and subject only to the same restrictions .

      It appears that the day room where the po » debtors are confined . in the misdemeanour ward , is a room enly fourteen feet by twelve feet , and at the time of the memorial being signed , no less than eighteen of these unfoituu&te men were crowded together in that small space . Necessity has since caused the removal of nine of them to a similar and corresponding room above . This day-room has two otone benches fixed , one on either side , for seats . Its only furniture consists of a table and four old stools . It is covered with . semi-elliptical grained brick arches . Besides the door , the entrance is further protected by a massive iron gate . Each of the sleeping cells is secured at the entrance with both doors asd iron gates in the eaine manner , and the passages or galterfes , aa

      they are here termed , are secured by doors and iron gates across them at intervals , in the same way . In the sleeping ceUs , the only article , ( for it would be a libel upon language to call it a bedstead , ) is a cast metal plate fastened ou the top of four iron supports , which are again secured to the stone floor . This metal plate is only two feet six inches wide , on whieh two of the poor debtors are frequently compelled to pass the night at the same time . Not so iu the debtors ' prison . It may be as well to remark , that the part of the prison we are describing was built Immediately subsequent to the destruction of Nottingham Castle by fire on the memorable rejection of the Reform Bill ; the period of its rejection , in conjunction with that circumstance , seems to point out pretty clearly the reason of its being made so doubly

      secure in every part , the want of necessary a ceo rum dation within it , and the class of offenders it was originally intended to receive . It is the gaoler ' s dealings with the more wealthy debtors that is th cause of the poorer class being crowded together , and deprived of air asd txercise therein . The misconduct of the senior turnkey , William Lounds , is also reported . One debtor , sixty years of age , is in continual excruciating pain , from blows and other injuries received from this menial ; an invalid has aho been brutally treated by him , and his disgusting conduct to the visitors and friends of the debtors , and their admission depending upon his capriciousness , even in tbe hours allowed by the rules , is acutely dwelt upon . Tbey also require the privilege ( if dissenters ) of being attended by the minister of their choice , and that such dissent from the Established Church snail

      be considered a reasonable ground for their non-attendance of Divine Setvice , within the meaning of the ninth rule . We have hot space for further remarks , but to Btate that the prayer of their memorial to the Home Office concludes by praying the enforcement of the 2 d and 3 d Victoria , cap . 50 , and that such alterations and a code of new rules may be framed in accordance witb the Bugg ^ atioDB of the ir memori al ;—ao far as in the wisdom of the Home Secretary , by and with the advice of the law officers of the Crown , may seem meet , but more especially th at the dealings of the

      gaoler with the prisoners may be totally abolished , and the whole of : the debtors now and in future may be placed in every respect upon one and tbe same footing . It is to be hoped their lawful and reasonable demand * may be complied , with by the Home Secretary , without ocenpying the time of tbe legislature on the meeting of Parliament on this long neglected subject ; and that Sir James Graham will feel it to be bis duty to issue a general order to gaolers to prevent the recurrence of such palpable grievances in debtors' prisons in future . —Evening Star . ¦ . .

      Untitled Article

      , THE NORTHERN STAR . : 7 — ~ - _ ^ —— . — —______ ¦ * ' ¦¦ i i »

  • Citation
    • Northern Star (1837-1852), Nov. 19, 1842, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct625/page/7/