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THE DEBATE ON mil. BUNCOMBE'S MOTION.
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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.
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STAFFoausHiKE . assizes . 5 XAPF 0 SD . THTOSDAT , MaSCH 30 . ( Before Mr . Jvstice Erskine and a Special Jury ) iUEGISA V . COOPEB ., B . ICHXRDS . AND CAPPUB . Hz . Justice Eeskixe proceeded at nine o ' clock " this Burning to snm ^ iip t i _ -is protracted . case . He "was sorry , after the patient attention -which the jtuy bad exhiKted rtnrmg ths icqciry . thai it -would be -necessary fer him to detain them -while he entered at length into the evidence on the pirt of the Grown and thB defence ; bnt , slthongh nnqoestJumbly much time had been lost in useless cross-examination ' of the -witnesses for the prcsecntaoa , be did hope the jnix "wonltl consider fuch a course -wsa nothing more than a manifestation of jasfc nonage by the defendant Cooper to the sjsteia of jorisiKnfience under -which he was then
taking his triaL Whatever might be She result , while no man could do otherwise than deeply deplore the distress -which existed in the Potteries at the time these Outrages occurred , on the other hand , no man ccnid exeuse ShB tumults and violence winch then took place Tee Learned Sergeant , in Mb re ply on the part of the Crown , had truly obserted , in the language of Mr . Curran 'he had tnewn tumult and violence to maie many ? ieb poor , but he had never knaffn it to make a poor man rich . " He ( the Learned Judge ) regretted that the defendant Cooper , in cross-examination , hutl thrown imputations upon the motives of Major Tea-. h , the gallant officer who , in the discharge of a necessary duty , had caused the mfijtaiy to aci on the morning of the 16 th of August : trat be ms glad to find , that
subsequently , in his addresB to the Jury , he , the defendant , had shown better taste , and had acquitted the gallant tfficer vf dcing more than w . Lat he considered >» . a dnty on that occasion . With those drcomEtarces they ( the Jury ) had n > thicg ¦ wha tever te do . The dtfenoants -were cha'grd . With divers other persons , -with having nnla- « rfally and seditiously conspired to excite tfce people to riots , routs , && , in breach of the pnblic pesca , and to excite and prevent the due execution of the I sw . Now , a conspiracy tras an attemp . on the part cf persons to accomplish a certain object by unlawful means . The object might bs perfectly lawful , but if its promotion was attempted by illegal me ^ ns , then anunlawful coni « iracy -was clearly establishad . If , as
¦ wa s the case in a recent trial in another part of tie conutiy , there bad been a count in the inctfctmint ¦ which wuuia have allowed him to reserve a case for the Court above , be Ebonld have gladly availsd himself of that course ; tat here h 8 had no option , but was compelled at otcc to give an opinion upon a point raised in the indictment- The result of his examination of the law npon the subject was then , that any number of ¦ workpeople ia ^ a perfect legal right to combine to compel E-iitens to raise thfcir -srsjes ; jusd if it WSS competent for them to z % ree net to work for Certain wastes given by emplojars , ha ( Mr . Justice Erskinei did not see v . by it was ict equally compettnt for them to agree and combine for any other legal object . He sawnothing in ths I 3 W to render such an assembly or combination
Illegal . Then , if the « btainment cf the Charier was a lawful object , which , u questiBBably , it was , and tht means pursued were not of an unlawful character , he did not see how , under such circumstances , a charge of sn illegal conspiracy could be supported . Bat it wouJd be for the jury zo say whether or not the dtfaidaots , in the means ttfcj adopted for the establishment of tbe People ' s darter , cid not conspire to "bring about that result by incitements to violence snd tumult ; whether they did net intend , by advising a cessation of labour , to prodnce discontent and those tumults and outrages ¦ which succeeded . If they ttbe jnry * wtre of opinion that the dtfandants intended iinnsccing the GuTernment or the Legislature by force and intimidation , then the chiTEe in the indictment was fully mass out Tie
leaned Judge then proceeded to read over and annljza the evidence . ACuoing to the turn-out at Mr . RiJg-• W ay * s manufactory , his Lordship obsctve-d that if the men were quietly at their work , and were willing te continue their work , snd a mob of people , in the manner the witnwsts hid described , Went , and by ttrror or fey force compelled then : to desist freni their work , that meeting was an unlawful meeting ; and if they were satisfied that that was recommended bj Cooper , the defendant and was tfce result of previous conspirary between them and the other defendants , or butwetn him and say other p&rsoEs , then tt-ii would ratisfy the charge -upon this indictment . The Learned Jndge , af t « going through the evidence with great care and patience , conelnded his address at eight o ' clock in the evening .
The Jury retired for about five minutes , ana upon their return found a verdict of Guilty against all the defendants , bnt recenunended the defendant Csppur to mercy . Mr . Serjeant Talfonrd said he -would take care that the Tecommendationof the Jury was attended to ; he thought he njl ^ ht pledge himself thai the defendant Cappur wonld nut be brongbt up for judgment . Cooper , addressing the Jadge , said the defendants felt deeply indebted to his -Lordship for h-s kindness and courtesy during the - whole of that protracted investigation , and hs was worthy of the n&ni 8 of Erikine .
The Judge—You bad better say nothing abeut me . The defendants ore to be brought up for judgment T * f-Tc ¦ fayn i _
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WARWICK ASSIZES . GITIL SIDE , Satckdas , April 1 . / Before Mr . Baron Aldersm ajid a Special Jury J ( From the Times . J TRIAL OF GEORGE WHITE . George White surrendered to answer an . indictment for seditions language scd jjotcoa aud uuiawful Bssembllne &t Birminga&m in Au . sust last The bill had been found at the Birmingham Borough Sessions , on the 22 nd of October last , at which time the . defendant was in
custody under the commitment of the magistraes , and the indictment was removed by certiorari into the Court of ¦ Qaeeu a Bench . Cn the 29 th of October s summons h&d been takes oat before a Judge -at chambers , and the defecdant was admitted to bail by Mr . Justice Cresswell on the 10 th of November , when recognizances ¦ were entered into by himself in £ 200 , and four surevias In £ 50 each , that he would appear and plead to the indictment , and appear on the retura of tile posiea in ( sss fe « should b « convicted .
Mr . Serjeant Adams . Mr . Hill . Q C , and Mr . "WaBDISGTOS appeared as counsel for the Crown . The defendant undertook his own defence unaided . Mi- Sergeant Adams stated to the Jury the case on "betalf of the Crown at some length , as it appeared by the evidence subjoined . He spoke of the f * ars that extensively prevailed in the town and neighbourhood , < jf trip , meeting of the magistrates on the 20 ih . tEd of their notices by placards and advertisements in the public papers of £ ta forbiddance of Rich meetings . He alluded to the state of thing * which rendered it necessary for the magistrates to apply lot , &zd the Government to supply , a reinforcement of military . In addition to the Dragoons usually quartered in the
barracks in Birmingham , a force of Infantry and Horse i Artillery had been procured . The Warwickshire , I TiVcreesteishiTe , and Staffordshire regiments of cavalry j had been also on dnty in the neighbourhood © f the j town and of the iron and eoal districts . Tie pensioners I too had been embodied and drilled , and great nnm- ' bera of the respectable inhabitants sworn in as special constables . The Learned Counsel observed upon the i extremely mischievous tendency , especially in times of , ' popular excitement , of such proceedings and conduct I as the defendant stood accused of . The Gentlemen of j the Jury , he saSd , "would hear the evidence , and then : pK > notmc =- wlsfcibsr the charges , or any and which of them , laid in the indietnifent were made out to their entire satisfaction . * - I
Mr H . M . Griffiths produced the placard affixed on the 19 : h by the defendant « : as , deposed by the witness Johnson ) , the notice cf meeting on the 22 d signed by O'Neill , the no * iccB by the Mayor and the Mayor and Magistrates of the 20 th iplacards ^ and newspapers ) , the defendant ' s letter to Cooper ( proved to be ia his handwritins ; by Mr . Adkins , the Governor of the "W ^ rwitk prison ) , a print il the Queen ' s proclamation issued on the 13 th , and a print of the Queen ' s proclam&tiun of Hie 12 ih of December , 183 SThe foEowing copies of the notices jf-sued by the Mayor and Magistrates were put in and read . —
" CAUTION . " Pubfic-oSce , Borcndi of Birmingham , August 20 , 1 S 42 . " "Wnereas information has been received that meet-Ings have been hfcld in various parts of the kingdom of large bodies of jren , who have proceeded froai place to place at unseasonable hours , and that violent an ^ seditions l&sguage has been addressed to th ? m , and it has been represented that finch meetings are intended to be held within this borough ; notice is hereby given , that no rush meetings will be permitted to assemble , aad caution is at the same time given to all well disposed persons not to attend or join any such mt * = tingB . Notice is also given , that all necessary measures will be adopted to prevent the assembling of any such meetings , so as effectually to protect the pnblic peace sad prevent the disturbance thereof .
" Samtjel Beale , Mayor . " ' "CAUTION . " Borough of Birmingham , August 20 , 1842 . " We , the undersigned , magistrates acting for &e borougk of Binningnam , having received information of meetings in tHs neighbourhood , and having this day -witaeased tie attempt nude by certain inditfdnila to call together and addrets * body of person * within the aM bormxh , under 12 ib" present' state of ^ diatnbuioe nfortutateij exutiagla okber parti _ of Bnglaad , deem
H to b * nr duty kunakeimowB to" the pobHa In genebJ that , » fter the pnbllc » tloil of her Majesty's procla XBititm , « ll aa » eruDliee of persona in con ^ derable nunv hex * having a maaifeei tendency to eodasger the public peaoe , and to excite the f earaof hex M ^ ertj'a peaceable lobjeeta an illegal , whatever may be their avowed object , and ¦ wherever held / TiotwithBtandJng they may not at the time be attended iritli open violence ; and ire dfiClaw cur ftrm . Intention to prevent the same , and to subject h . iy individuals who may be found aeMstinB ai such asaemUsgea to tbe peral&a ef the law . "And "we furthfir caution all veil disposed person tola joining in ^ » i being prfsent at , any such meetings
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processions , &c , as they will UiereDy Dnng thtmsuives into peril and incur the consequences of any measures that may be adopted for the apprehensisn of the ai-diEpesed , ana VhB prwerratiou of tbe public peace . " : ( Signed by the Major and nine other Magistrates . ) Mr . 8 . Beale sworn . —Was the Mayor of Birmingham in Au gust last There was great excitement prevailing in the town , and there was a great influx of strangers , many of them oolliers . There were many CbartUt meetings btld . Heard of the meeting ef the 13 th of August . The magistrates met , and gave directions to Mr . Burgess , tht Commissioner of Police . There were meetings on tbe 16 th and 17 th . They began about six o ' clock in the evening and ended about dark . They were held at Daddeston-row . There were about 1 , 000 people , working men . Between the lClh and the 20 th
the fcseitemmt greatly incte&sed . On the 20 th the magistrates met again , and issued the placard . There were atthis time placards calling a meeting for the 22 nd . O'Neill's placard enme out first , or at least he saw it first . Fears extensively prevailed In the town . Ths notices trere issued and posted by the snthority of the magistrates , and special constables sworn in . Tbe magistrates applied / or and obtained additional military assistance . There were large bodies assembled in various parts of the town on the 22 nd , 23 rd , 2 iih , and 25 th ; but the magistrates and police prevented any regular mtetins . Business was during the whole of the time , in a gitat mtasnre , suspended . The inhabitants W 6 re Blamifcd , and the peace of ths town waa greatly endangered . The del'tn'innt was apprehtnded earJy in the murning of the 2 Gth , and committed the same day , Jttr which no further meeting was attempted , and order was resfoitd .
It was thtn proved that during the week preceding the one in which the defendant was apprehended there was a great ii flux of colliers ; into Birmingham , who were spread all over the town , and there was very grtit disturbance . Joseph Johnson— Saw the defendant on the 19 th ot August fix a placard , corresponding with the one produced , on a wall by the Grten Man public-house , in Moor-street , Biimingham . Read it at the time and left it there- It appeared to attract attention . Had no doubt the placard he saw was in the some words as that now produced . Tue placard was then put in and read , and was as follows : — •* Ciiartists—Tbe men of tbe nortti ba-re struck wert I The people are being murdered ! Attend at Daddeston-row to-nigbt !
Come in your thousands ! There was no printer ' s name upon it Witcesses were then called , who proved the uttering of the words at the meeting of the 15 th of August , as laid in the first count of tbe indictment . Sarah Mann—Was at a meeting in Duddeston-row on the 18 " , h of August , about fievtn o ' clock . There wei e eight or nine hundred persons present . The defendant spoks of the Qaeen ' s proclamation , and said there was one at tht time cf the Bull-ring concern , ic . S » e tht-n proved thf uttering of the words as laid in thB second cjuiit of the indicluient There was a policeman before her , and many of the people cried out th « t he was a spy , and said . " Stone him ; " " Fetch him out of the mob , " &C . There was a gnat disturbance , and she was friibtened and went home .
EbectZir Portlock—Saw a crowd of persons on tbe 22 nd , coming along Summer-lane . Went with his brother into s public-house there White , the defendant , came , and there were thousands of people . The defendant addressed them , and said they had been misled by 0 *> feill and Sturge ' s party , who had been negotiating ¦ with thepoHce . Hesaidthathe had called a meeting for the following night , in Daddeston-row , andhtf woalU hold his meeting force to force , if they would flo as he did . Tbe people cheered , and said " We will . " He Siid , " Ton will come prepared to meet tbe police ; you will bring the sticks in your jacket-pockets , and it should be force to force , and all the policemen in Birmingham and England shouldn't disperse them . " There was a man dressed as a Quaker , who said te had brought four hundred colliers into the town to support the meeting , and O'Neill and Sturge had deserted them . A placard , as subjoined , had been , on the 19 th , posted abiUt toe town and neighbourhood : —
11 Men of Birmingham , —A crisis is now come—Britain acd Ireland are aroused—tbe nation ' s voice declares , in loudest tones , that the noble Btruggle must now be made . The days of tyranny are numbered . Shall Birmingham , once the Polar star of liberty , now alumber ? No . Awake } Arise I Stand forw-ird in the nation's moral battle , and declare that now our country shall be free . " A great meeting will beheld on Monday , Aug . 22 nd , at ten o ' clock , on a piece of ground in Summer-Jane , near the A * ylnin , to memorialize ibe- Queen , and to consider what Birmingham shall do in the present awful state of the country , lz-flaential men , of all ahades ol democratic sentiment , and from various parts of the con . tiy , wm attend and fire their advice on this Important subject " By order of the public meeting held on Thnr aday , Aug . 18 . in the " Christian Chartist Church , Newhall-street ,
"Abthck ONeill , Secretary . " > J ; ctael Daly , late a Sergeant of ths Birmingham police , and now a suMnspector of the Suflurdshire force , having given in evidence tbe words uttered at the meeting on the lath of August , as laid in the flrsv count in tbe indictment , deposed to the facts that the defendant on that occasion told the people to conduct themselves In a peaceable manner , for all the authorities wanted was an opportunity of bludgeoning them and cutting them up , and that the people were quiet . George Phib ' p Tandy , a policeman , also swore te the utterance of the anguage on the 15 th , as laid in the first count of the indictment . Isaac CottriD having , on the 2 Gib . of August , apprehended Cooper ( the wtll-known Chartist ) searched him and found upoa his person a letter ( proved by the keeper of the Warwick gaol to be in the defendont ' s handwriting . ) The letttr waa then pnt in and rtad , and was as fallows : —
«• Birmingham , Aug . 24 , 1842 . ' We are in a tremendous state ef excitment here ; military , pensioners , police , special constable * , cannon , and God knows what are being called into requisition . Sturge and O'Nfcill sold us on Monday and broke up a meeting which they called in order to defeat ours of the fol . owing day . Cooper , there never was greater rascals than they hive proved themselves ( see tbe Star of Saturday . ) We held our meetings in defiance of proclamations , exhortations , and threats from tbe magistrates ; they covered Dnddestdn-row with police , but we ordered the people to follow us , and held a meeting of 40 . 000 , where we carried the Charter amidst thundering cheers . 1 forgot to tell you . that n > y bouse has been
surrounded with police these two nights , and that a warrant has been i » BUed for my apprehen « ion . ] have , nevertheless , marched with the ' sovereign people' and addressed them in defiance of their warrant We shall meet again to-night and ' nomistake . ' There was some ugly work last night—my body-guard chucked a raw lobster into the canal , and the town has been paraded by soldiers , our lads cheering and marching with them like tramps . I -would rather tiian ; £ io you were here now to sing ¦ Spread tbe Charter . ' I expect to be landed in Warwick gaol before Saturday ; but , dear Cooper , no matter what befalls me , I have made up my mind to stand by our glorious motto , ' The Peoples Charter and no surrender . '
" Tour democratic brother . " George White . "We are getting on gloriously here—ONeill and StuTge have damned themselves . 11 To Mr . Thomas Cooper , No . 11 , Church Gate , LeictsttiT . " There was a meeting intended for the 24 th , but the police interfered aud prevented it ; and the defendant headed 4 , 000 or 5 , 000 persons , and took them to Yarcly Fields , in the county of Worcester , three or four miles from Birmingham ; and the mob returned afier dusk riotously and tuniuHnously , to the great
aiana of peaceable and orderly people . There was a meeting on the 25 tb , but that was tbe subject of another lniictment . At the meeting of the 22 nd , which was in the morning , several thousands assembled in the neighbourhood of the asylum , in Summer-lane . The arrangements of tbe ptlice then prevented . any regular proceedings of the mob ; and the police communicated with Sturge and O ' Ne ill , who told the people to go home , and " net act in violation of the orders cf tbe magistrates . " Mr . Srurge , on this occasion , begged of the people to disperse , and they began to do « o , but were met by the defendant , who reunited and addressed them .
Olher general evidence was used , of the carrying of banners by the mob , of the crowds collected , and of the general hooting at the police , the noise , tumult , and great confusion , and consequent alarm that were created , and of the facts that people closed their shutters from apprehension , and that the ordinary business of men was to some extent suspended . This was the case presented on the part of the Crown . The defendant then tft being nearly five o'clock , and tJie trial caving commenced at about eleven ) applied to the Learned Judge for an adjournment of tbe case on the alleged grounds that he was too much exhausted and not well enough then tor conduct his defence as efficiently as he might do and desired , and that several of bis witnesses , whose testimony he deemed to be of importance to him , bad been prevented from as y § t arriving tl Warwick .
The learned and humane Judge responded , that he was ready to grant tbe iefendant any indulgence heconld . He said that be had observed , in thedefgndaoPs condict of hit eaM hitherto , bo desire vexaflons 3 y ^ or with immgCTaotiret , to protract the duration of the trial , and ha wm quite -willing to believe a n * ta » ^ efenaua lafl no inch intention . He than reryanUdij aaia , "i irffl aecedfi to yon ** eqttert , and pant yoa the indulgence you seek , portponing your hearing nnta Monday . " , * v- *« - * - » . The defendant—I humbly thank your Lordship .
Mt Baron Aldehsou—Gentlemen of the jury , I hope and believe that it is not necessary to caution you , not in the cenrae of to-morrow , Sunday , or between this and . Monday morning , to communicate with any other person than one of yourselves upon the subject of this trial . At present yon have heard , you . know , only
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one side , and the otber remains to be told . You understand me , gentlemen . The Defendant—I have perfect confidence in yeu , gentlemen of the jury , snd seek to put no further restraint upon you than you own consciences may dictate to be proper and right . The Court then adjourned to Monday morning , at nine o'clock . Monday , April 3 . At nine o ' clock this morning Georg e White , the Chartist , in a tone of uprightness and injured innocence , commenced his defence . He spoke in an Irish brogue , aud began by observing upon the character of the witnesses brought aghinst him , and saidi that surely the jury could not think of
convicting npon the evidence of such blackguards as those policemen , " of that fine Mr . Tandy and the rascally spy Daly . " He complained of the spy system , and of the people being hunted down by such fellows . Bad man , as the Learned Serjeant said he was , he had entertained the blackguard Daly at his table in his private house , where he had been prying into his private thoughts , and then came into the witnessbox telling point blank lies against him . He bad insinuated himself into the good graces of the defendant , as a private individual , Beeking to have the gun trade taught him , and for these honest services Mr . Commissioner Burgess had made him a sergeant . He didn ' t think on Saturday night that he should have been this morning called upon to answer these
trumpery charges , for he had then seen the " learned counsel looking quite ugly at one another" on the breakiug down of their witnesses , and thought that they were going to uive it up . Was he to be dragged from his home and his wife and child upon tho evidence of such a set of blackguards as they had seen , the Virry rakings and scum of Birmingham , who had been the companions of Mr . Griffiths ( the attorney for the Crown ) for months ? He thought that Mr . Griffiths would ere this have been tired of the dirty work in which he was engaged . As to the proof of alarm having been caused , beyond thit of an old womaa who sold cabbages having put up her shutters , there was none . The meetings had been between the hours of six and half-past 8 in the evening ,
and not in the night time , according to the evidence of these vile blackguards , and it was more desirable to make a population intelligent by lecturing on summer eventDgs than to encourage people to sot in public houses . There was nothing that ho saw against him to answer , except the tomfoolery sentence mentioned by Porilook . ' Bring them in your jacket pockets . " How could they bring theipolicemen in their jacket pockets 1—and it was to the policemen that the word '' them" was by this witness made to refer . He had been opposed to . the colliers coming into the town , aud ho thought that the Anti Corn Law League had not been benefitting the workiti £ classes . He had bad nothing to do with their strikes , but had told the people that if friend Stnrge
found them the money for the support of themselves and their wives and families , they might strike as soon as they pleased . He complained of tho great expenses that he had been forced to incur in having been forced to appeal to the Court of Queeii ' s Bench to be admitted to bail , pieviously to which he had been detained in prison fur eleven weeks—shameful it was . He had opposed Stnrgo and all of that party , and if he was a ro ^ ue , be was an open , and not a sly , cunning , hypocritical rogue . If it was to err , to be a friend of the whol' - family of man , then had he erred , and not else . There bad been no more disturbance than there would have been after a dog with a kettle tied to his tail , and all the children in Birmingham would willingly subscribe a halfpenny
a piece for such a . spree next week , aud for this cause there had been all the police in hundreds , drawn up rank and file , and tbe military and all that fctuff , and the police had been engaged in running after a few little boys who threw pebbles at one another . The throwing stones must have been done with great care , for nobody appeared to have beon hit . There was Mr . Spooner , oue of the magistrates , who committed him , he saw on the benoh laughing , and it was a mighty good joke , he dare say , lo cry out " there ' s a Chartist , pop him in Warwick gaol , " but it was no joke to him , the fun of the thing was all one side . He knew that he stood in the front rank of Chartism . " 1 am a Chartist , " he said , but were people to be bullied and frightened out ot the
avowal of what they thought light 1 He argued that the Charter was nothing new , and that the very word ** poll" meant nothing short oi" universal suffrage . He was before the magistrates , it was true , and there was some chatter about slicks and umbrellas , but all that was in evidence was , there was a lot of little lads running about the street who frightened all the police- When before the magistrates he lost , his bilk pocket handkerchief , by the way , and some body pocketed the affront as he did . There was not a greater set of scoundrels and known thieven than the Birmingham police . They had been turned out of various other towns , and prowled about the streets prying into the actions of the people . He had nothing whatever to do with the Bull-ring affair , which was four or five years ago . He came from
Leeds to Birmingham two years ago last February . He had brought a great number of witnesses at a very heavy expense into the town , but he did not know that he should call them to meet this paltry trumpery that was talked of . It would bo a loss of time . Every courn in the indictment was knocked up without them , and if the conductors of the prosecution were determined to keep them , tho gentleman of the jury , he was not . He said that there was nothing against him , and , as the case had not been proved , he called upon ilum now as honest men , aud men who had families of their own , to pronounce him lint , guiliy of the crime that was alleged against him . His conduct had been buch that he hud had no Deed to shrink into holes and corners , as the witnesses for the prosecution had been compelled to do , and he had no doubt but that he should walk out of that
room honourably acquitted . Ho trusted that the state of things would yet be changed , and that those who were pauptra now would become enabled to earn a competency , aud to be honest customer ^ in the purchase of the manufactures of tho rich , to cheir advantage , and the comfort of themselves , and then that these " blue-coated fat pigs , '' who vvere living in idlune :-s upon the " vitals" of honest men would be dispersed and sent about their business . He would not make a long defence ; he would not call his witnesses ; he would not keep the Learned Judge , the gentleman of the jury , and the counsel waiting there . There was another indictment against him , and he hoped and trusted that they would get rid of that also in the course of the day . What was he charged with , but that he was a Chartist , which was no crime at all !
Mr . Serjeant Adams—My Lord , as counsel for the Crown in the case , I don ' t think it necessary to exercise my right of reply . Mr . Baron Al 6 erson . —Very well , you have a perfect right to do so if you please . That is a matter only for your own consideration . Mr . Ssrjeaut Adams was satisfied with the leaving the case as it stood without replying . Mr . Baron Alderscw then proceeded to sum up . He said that there was no evidence to support the count for riot , and that the jury should confine their attention to those for the different seditious language charged to have been uttered on the three ocoasians of the 15 : h , 19 th , aud 22 ad of August , snd that of the unlawful assembling . In order to convict of the former
respectively they must be satisfied that the words were used , that they bore the meaning charged , and that they were Ubed with the intent charged . An unlawful assembling consisted not in that which was calculated to alarm merely timid women and children and foolish men , but in what reasonably tended to excite alarm in persons of ordinary mind and understanding , aud to interrupt them in the reasonable enjoyment of their own comforts . If the purpose had been by the course alleged to change the laws , he was not prepared to fay that it was not an overt act of high treason , and this was a warning , which in no unfriendly spirit he meant to give on this occasion . People had a right to indulge their own opinions , and , by lawful means , to promote them , though he
himself and the gentlemen of the jury ni / ghfc differ from them . It was the privilege of Englishmen . It was the improper means , bv force and threats , and not the object , which was complained of . The defendant had observed upon a particular measure as having been carried by force ; but he , ( the Learned Judge ) as to that , said thai it was a crime , if it ever was done , to carry that measure by force . His Lordship then read the words contained in the first count of the indictment . The object seemed to be to obtain wnat the defendant called tbe Charter . There was no pretence for saying that the meeting had been in the dark hours of the night . The defendant appeared to have conelnded with an exhortation to peace and tranquility . It was for the jury to say ,
how far the import , of the language might have been varied by the context and the rest of the speechj which they had not before them . He had felt it to be his duty , in a case at Derby , to suggest possible contexts , making the matter of a less guilty , or more innocent nature . Here it did not occur to him how to do so , b » t he enjoined the jury to take it into their consideration whatever of this nature might fairly and reasonably be suggested by their own minds . * His Lordship then proceeded to read the evidehoe . As to the excited state of the people at the time , he observed that what might not be dangerous at one time , and under one state ofcircumstances might be so in the extreme at another , and under another state of circumstances . It might b « safe and not dangerous to introduce a red hot poker into
a grate full of coals , whereas it might be dangerous and ; unsafe to introduce it into one full of gusp owder or other explosive material . It appeared that at the meeting not many ot the strangers in the town had been observed prevent . Tbe BOtioe Of the maglS ' tratoa was * very judicious andpropor proclamation to have been put forth at that time , forbidding meetings of this description . The Qaeen ' s proclamation had . been extensively posted in the town as well ' as in other parts of the kingdom , and it contained an exhortation to the magistrates to foe vigilant and prompt . The placard that had been issued by O'Niell the defendant was not responsible for , and he must say that this was by far the most outrageous that had been produced . That about the" moral battle" was a piece of fudge that they always put in .
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It was , however , only evidence iu this ca « e as showing the eiate of popular excitement at the time . The people had been peaoeable . ThiB circumstance was ambiguous , because it did not appear whether they were so because they were bo minded , or because of the steps taken by the authorities . The meeting in Summer-row had been after the posting of O'Niell ' s placard . At the meeting on the 15 th , in Duddeston-row , the language was certainly very imprudent , if used . With regard to the spies , what oould be more irrational than for the policemen to be sent in their uniforms for the purpose of noting what was said ! They went for such purpose in plain clothes of course . It wasn ' t a question whether the jury morally approved of the conduct of these
policemen , but whether they believed the acts spoken to by them to have been done as they stated . The evidence was admissible , though it might come from an impure and a tainted source , as was tho every day practice as to accomplices . His Lordship remarked upon the supposed intention to call off in some degree the military from the north , and then proceeded to read the words alleged to have been used at the meeting of the 19 th , and in allusion to those about the former dreadful insurrection and burning at the Bull ring observed , "What was this for but to set the people to aci against the Government and the laws ?" He then read and remarked on tbo placard which the defendant had been seen to affix upon the wall . As to the prospects that were held out to the people
assembled , it was highly mischievous to hold out anything of the sort . " Tho poor shall never cease out of the land , " the Bible said , and it must be so ; it ever was a world of trials—all had thrir triajs—and the greater part of the ills which those who gathered round tho defendant complained of were buch as Kings and Lords couldn't create and couldn ' t cure . There must always be poor people , and the existence of tbe poor would be the blessing of the rich , if , as he could wish , all did their duty aa some did . The happiness and good of tho poor depended mainly upon themselves aud their owu conduct , and the rich should set them the exam pie . In considering the language of the 19 th , the terras of the preliminary placard were to be noticed , but he again
observed , that it was fair to give the defendant the benefit of any ingenious suggestion as to the context , because thoy did not know what it was , but none occurred to him . His Lordship then read and observed upon the words used at the meeting of the 22 nd . As to those of " Bring them in your jacket pockets , " they were nonsense , taken literally as deposed to , but it was for the jury to consider and determine what their true import waa . Then as to the words , " Force to force , " what could th * -y mean else than setting the people to resist the authorities ! There , then , were the instructions for a placard given to the printer by the defendant . The printer thought that souieof the words were too strong , and refused to print them , and some were struck out , which , though
legible enough , they would put out of their consideration . The defendant was to be responsible only for what he had actually adopted . What remained called upon the people in two large characters , " To work no more , " and spoke of their " delivery from the hellish tyrauny that blastod the hopes and the prospects of the people . " Now , those to whom he referred were no more the people than ware " the three tailors ol Tooley-street . " Tho defendant was a man of acuteness and understanding , and , one would think , must have seen and known the operation of these meetings at buch a time . The people , in giving up the meeting that had boon , intended ( 5 turge ' s and O'Neill ' s ) had acted in accordance with the law , and upon the principle that the better part of valour was discretion , and he wished that the defendant had given them up too . One ot' the policemen had very properly declined to answer the question put to him
"Whether he wasn ' t the worst person in all Birmingham V and the Leanud Judge thought that it had not been judicious in the defendant to cast aspersions upon ail tho . witnesses for tho prosecution , without proving anything against any one of them . If they were all of such very bad character , it was very unfortunate . With the defendant ' s letter to Cooper , which he read , the prosecution closed . Was it reaaonable that anybody should have the power to say of himself what therein appeared about his body guard , and bo on , and the throwing tho raw lobster iuto the canal ! Who waa he that he was to have a body-guard ? The question waa , whether they were satisfied that he uttered the words with the intent imputed , &c . If they thought so they would couvict him . If they could oxplaiu it in any way consistently with his innocence , he besought them to givo him the benefit of it .
The jury retired , and in a few minutes returned with a verdict of Guilty , upon the first three counts . Sentence will be pronounced ia the Court oi Queen ' s Bench next term .
The Debate On Mil. Buncombe's Motion.
THE DEBATE ON mil . BUNCOMBE'S MOTION .
In the House of Commons , on Tuesday , in last week , after presentation of petitions on various subjects , and sonie conversation on foreign matters , Mr . T . S . DUJVCO . VJBE rose to move— "That a Select Conimittee be appointed , te inquire into the grievances complained ot , and the allegations contained in the petitions of Guorge White , of Birmingham ;—Robert Brook , of Todniorden ;—James Leech , of Manchester ; -. } . G . Harnoy , of Shrffield;—Jonathan ' Brown and nine others , prisoners in Southwell House of Correction ;—R . T . Morriaon , chairman of a public meeting at Nottingham ;—John Skevington , of L « ughboroush ;—James Arthnr , of Carlisle;—John A ) lin > on ,
of Stockport;—Samuel Rotvnson ;—of Stoke-upon-Trent ;—James Mitchell , of SouUiport ;—Samuel Crowther , of Halifax;—William ( JU piilan , chairman of a public meeting at South Shields - . —the Committee to report their opinion , with the evidence , to tbe House . " He said that her Mvjesty had been graciously pleased , in her speech from the throne , to express her concern that the public peace had been most seriously disturbed duriog the lust year in the manufacturing districts : and her Majesty had also been pleased to observe that the ordinary laws of the land bad been sufficient for the suppression of those divturbancts . He believed that the House fully concurred in these views : but he believed also , that if the House bad been in possession of the circumstances which he was now about
to lay before them , they would not have expressed themselves as they did in their address in answer to that speech . He did not with it to be understood tbat he intended to impute to the government tho slightest desire to mislead her Majesty , that House , or tho country : he believed that the government had been themselves misled , and that op to the present hour they were unaware of the illegal transactions which hud taken place . He did not mean to say that the ordinary law tag not sufficient . It was not understood that the government had applied to Parliament for any extraordinary powers , such as a suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act , or of the other acts passed iu 1819 and 1820 ; but he appeared thare to say that something more than the ordinary law had been put in force—that
the magistrates of England had administered something more tban tbe law , and that they had administered it with partiality , cvuelty , and oppression . Ho waa aware that ho was not now about to address an impartial or an unprejudiced tribunal ; for look whichever way be would , be saw nothing but justices of the peace—( bear , and laughter)—the great unpaid^—ornamenting every bench of that House . He was aware of the risk he ran , of the hornet ' s nest he was bringing about bis ears , by the Btaienifciits which he was about to make ; but he had a duty to perform , and he should net shrink from its performance let him please or offend whom he might ( Hear , bear , bear . ) His motion wai not brought forward with any party viewa or feelings whatever , and he trusted that if he should
be able to make out a sufficient priina facie case for tho inquiry for which he asked , there was such asensoof justice in that House that no sentiments of false delicacy would induce nny man , or any body of men , in that House to shrink from tbe duty which they owed to the people—( bear , hear . ) He had presented some petitions to that House which be proposed to refer to a select committee , in order that the committee might report their opiuion on the truth of the allegations in those petitions ; and it would be necessary , if nut to refer to the whole of the petitions , to refer to -most of them . The first petition related to what might be called the origin of the disturbances ; it was a petition which bad proceeded from a meeting held by the inhabitants of South Shields . He had presented it to
the House on the-3 rd of March , and he bad since then received various communications respecting it from tbe manufacturing districts . The petitioners prayed that House to institute tin inquiry into tbe origin of those disturbances , and they certainly did so in no very qualified terms . The committee of that House who bad ordered it to be printed bad caused to be expunged from it certain words which applied to tbe conduct of individuals . The petitioners i-xpreased their regret at the disturbances which had taken place ; they stated that they did not attribute them altogether to tbe distressed state of the people , but they considered that the causes of Mie late outbreak were mainly owing to the inflammatory and revolutionary tendency ot the speeches of the Anti-Corn-Law League—( cheers
from tbe Ministerial benches . ) They stated that whilst their friends were suffering imprisonment , expatriation , &c , those who were tbe causes of the disturbances were at liberty , and they asked the House to institute a strict and scrutinizing investigation into the causes of the Mo outbreak . The Hon . Speaker tben ran over the principal incidents ot the beginning of the strike Btsi in Staffordshire and then in I ^ ncashire , -which being already familiar to our readers we omit . Speaking of the meeting at Manchester , on the Oth of Augttst , in Granby-row Fields , to -which the Aihton men were escorted by Mr . Mamde
and the Common Clerk , A * said , that meeting was addressed by a Very intelligent man named Doyte , a Chartist , to ttoe presence of tho stipendiary magistrate and the common clerk ; in the course ol his address Doyle said that there could be no doubt of the meeting being a lavrfwl one , the stipendiary magistrate being present ; acd that no one could afterwards object to anything nob being done in a lawful manner as they -were then acting :. The consequence was , that every one was satisfied there was a dearee of sanction given to these proceedings . The crowd soon separated , and proceeded to pay the visits they intended to pay before they entered Manchester , and invited the different mills
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ta turn out . At the end of three days hardly a mill waa at work at Manchester . It appeared that this outbreak wasjnot got np for tbe purpose of carrying any publio measure ; but after this time delegates ware chosen and met , and nearly all those individuals who turned but declared for what was called the Charter . With respect to this demand for the Charter , or political equality . i | e ^ oald only say that these people were quite as well entitled as any otber class to demand what they conceived to be their political rights . On the fourteenth of August , things bad taken a very different tarn from what was expected , and from that ! moment a degree of severity—a degree of oppression and unconstitutional proceedings of tbe most disgraceful feind were resorted to on the part of tbe
magistrates towards those individuals who had engaged in the turn-out A proclamation was issued by the magistrates , as he had been informed , in which protection was promised to life and property , and in which it was stated that those who resisted the turn out and continued } to work should receive ample protection ; and , if he was correctly , informed—and ihe matter could be ( easily investigated by the comtnitteo , if it should be grauted-T-8 ome of these millowners who had seen the | proclamation , and had therefore resibted the mob in their attempt to enforce the turn-out , were blamed by these magistrates for resisting the mob . — ( Hear , hear ) Now , what was the state of the country between Colne and Burnley fit this time ; and what Wi 3 tbe conduct of some of the magistrates and
millowners with respect to the turn-out ? He had'received a communication on this subject from a person of the name of Beesley , who resided at Accrington . * ' On the 16 th of August tbe crowd from Burnley demanded admission ! into Colne , and promised Mr . Folds ( magistrate of Colne ; that no properly should be destroyed , upon which be ordered the soldiers to open' out , and the town was handed over to a Chartist of the name of Mooney , and also gave him £ 1 out ef his own pocket , upon the understanding that life and property should be kept inviolate . Now , if the late outbreufe | bad not been concocted by other than the working classes , would tbia dispenser of justice have given the town into the hands of the people , and with it money out of bis own pocket , when , he had a
sufficient force to feeep them back ? I have received from Bacup , information respecting the conduct of some of the manufacturers ia that neighbourhood . Mr . Brooks , of Sunnyside , I believe the son of the alderman \ tbis information is from men who were there , and are ready to make oatb upon it ) , said to them , when tbe people went to stop his works , ' that they were taking the right plan ; that by such means they woald be able toicompel the Government to do something for them , and by no other means . ' He also went round his works , and showed them his boilers , whilst they drove in the plugs . He gave them every encouragement , and told them wbtre tbe otber print-sbops were in they neighbourhood , and the people proceeded from his works ' to stop the others ; be also cave them
something to ' eat . Mr . George Hamilton gave them food when they stopped his mill ; this gent eamn lives at Irwell-terince , near Bacup , Lancashire . Mr . Whitehead gave them bread , butter , ham , and cheese , when they stopped his works . Mr Ackroyd , B * cup , gave them , wh < n they stopped his mill , both food and money . With respect to Mr . Folds , when in the police-f fflce after my arrest , I heard the superintendent of toe ; police say that Mooney could not be arrested ; that the ! magistrate bad acted rather injudiciously ; that they had given Mooney the power to stop tbe mills ; and that he had done so under the sanction of the magistrates . This I can Jafntm . " Such proceedings would certainly lead any one to suppose that th millowers and the magi strates did not object to tbe mills being stopped ; but the moment * those persons
declared «| n favour of certain political rights , a very different jcourse was pursued from what had hitherto been followed . On the 11 th of Auffnst , he believed the magistrates first assembled at the Town-hall respecting this movement , and they sent for Sir C , Shaw . That ofiltter thought It to be his duty to give in a list of the names of those parties whom he considered to be the most dangerous agitators of political questions in the Uwa of Manchester ; upon receiving which , ' some of thx magistrates present stated that they knew that these were the persons who had caused the late disturbances and bad originated the outrages which had taken place . Upon which , as he ( Mr . Duncombe ) had been informed , Sir C . Shaw said that this was not tbe case , for that be knew that the persons who originated the turn-out and the didturbances were the hired advocates of the
Corn-Law League —( load cries of "hear , hear , " from the ministerial benches . ) This was also one of the allegations in the petition which be had presented from South Shields , and if the allegation was capable of being disproved , the committee would be a very proper tribunal for that ; purpose . The proceedings , however , which tben took place towards the working classes were of tbe most { unjust nature , and the petitioners were perfectly right in saying , that punishment should not bu allowed to fall on the heads of those individuals who bad received some encouragement , bat upon tho originators and promoters of these disturbances . But what was the conduct which those magistrates of Manchester pursued towards those who were supposed to be guilty of what he supposed he
must call political offences ? On this psint be would refer to ¦ tbe first petition which b . 6 had presented , from Jatnes Leach , bookseller and stationer , of 40 , Qakstrett , Manchester . It appeared that it was intended by hini . ° elf and other delegates to bold a public meet ing on the 16 th of August , in commemoration of the memory or Mr . Hunt , for that was the anniversary of the day known by the Dame of the Peterloo-day . The petition commenced thus : — " That your petitioner was arrested on the 17 th day of August , 18 * 2 , on a charge of sedition and conspiracy , and after being confined in a dark , dirty , and damp cell from Wednesday till Friday , waa then , for the first time , brought up before UlB magistrates , Messrs . Foster and Maude ; and , after an examination , was rsmanded till Tuesday , Mr . Beswick ,
-superintendent of the Manchester police , stating by that timej he should be prepare 1 with his witnesses . " Now he Y ould ask the Honourable and Learned Attorney-General whether be ( Mr . Duncombe ) was not correct ia designating this imprisonment of the petitioner , W ithout examination , from Wednesday to the following Tuesday , an illegal transaction on the part of the magistrates ? The hiw was , that , when a man was arrested , jbe Bhould be carried before a magistrate as joon as possible , but it appeared that this petitioner was arrested on the Wednesday , and was not carried before a magistrate at all until the Friday , although there was a magistrate sitting op stairs in the place where he was conn ; ed . It appeared that when Mr . Leach was carried before the magistrates , Messrs .
Maude and Foster , they did not take the trouble to inquire into' the casa , but remanded tmn , without examination , to the following Tuesday : this , he contended , was an illegal proceeding , and he should like to see the lawyer who would say that it was not so . The petitioner proceeded to say , " That good and substantial bai was pffereel , but was refused , on the ground that the offence was of so heinous a nature that no kail could be accepted . " He begged to remind the Hcuie , that the offence for which Mr . Leach was arrested was , that a placard waa posted at hia door iD which thu people v ? ere called upon to declare for the Charter . 41 That your petitioner then , -with thirteen others , was confined in a very narrow cell , where there was scarcely room for two persons to pass each other , aud where
the stench arising from a privy at one end of it , along with the disagreeablcness of so many being confined together in so small a space , rendered it most intolerable and disgusting . That at night your petitioner , with three others , Mr . Charles Turner Mr . Tinker , and Mr . Siddons , were locked up in a cell two yards and a half by two , in which there wtre two beds , two feet and a half each in breadth ; one of these cells are usually allowed for two prisoners , though they be felons . The beilB were swarming with vermin , and the narrowness of them rendered it impossible for your petitioner , with the other prisoners , to take off their clothes . The consequences was , that your petitioner , with the othtt prisoners ;; never undressed for thirteen nights . ' It appeared that tbe petitioner , aa weU as those confined
with him ,- were remanded for thirteen days , because the superintendent of police thought proper to tell the Magistrates that if they were remanded , he should be enabled to produce evidence against them at a future day . At the same time it was clear that this-man knew that there was no evidence , and that he should not be able to bring forward any evidence shoeing criminality on the part ot these persons . The fact was , that this was donejto prevent these persons being set at liberty , and they were thus confined in this disgraceful manner in defiance of the Habeas Carpus Act , which , notwithstanding the boast of the government that the ordinary law had proved sufficient in their hands , had been virtual y suspended by the magistrates in these district ? . That oa Sunday , your petitioner , with thirteen others .
were paraded in the prison-yard before Sir Charles Shaw , Inspector Irvin , MacMullen , and others of the Manchester police . Your petitioner was called out from the rjest of the prisoners by Sir Charles Shaw , and asked if ther j was anything he could do to serve your petitioner >} that your petitioner complained of the great hardships to which ho was subjected , not being allowed to see any of his family or friends , and requested ihim to see Mr . Maude upon the surg-ct , which he promised to do ; that gentleman ( Maude ) lio wever , refused every application made to him , and during the whole period of your petitioner ' s confinement , neither frietid no * even legal adviser was allowed to visit him . j That on the following Tuesday , AugU 3 t 23 , your petitioner was again brought np before the above-named magistrates , and aftee a lengthened examination , was again put bacfc till the Friday
followiog , the pr , OBecutor atattmg , that by that time he had no doubt but he wonld be able to prove a very serious offence against your petitioner ; good and substantial ban was again offered , bnt refused , on the same grounds aa before . ] That on Friday , Angu « t 26 , your petitioner was ; agaiapbro » ghfc « p , and after an exHnination of witnesses bad : been goat throngh at great length , was commuted to take bis trial at Liverpool , but would be allowed oat , apon finding two sveties of two bandied pooncta each , and himself in four hundred , giving forty-eighthoW notice of bail ; that bail was immediately tendered in court ; . . notwithstanding , your petitioner jwes put bade till the forty-eight hoars should transpire , land -was ultimately liberated on Tuesday , tbe 30 th day of August , at four o ' clock in the afternoon , being ninety-sis hours In prison after , tbe bail had been flrat tendered in court" Now , it was clear in this instance , that not mote than forty « eight hours ¦ was required to inquire ) into the solvency of the bail ;
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but it was determined to prolong the imprisonment , ia g | the most wanton , unjustifiable manner , for forty-eight §| hours longer . If a committee were granted , he should . m be able to prove that it was well known to the magi * . % trates that the bail which was offered by Leach ana t ? bis fellow-prisoners could not have been better as r » . ' * garded the gentlemen who presented themselves for ~ that purpose . " Shortly after * your petitionerWaaagain tSarrested on a second cbarge of . conspiracy , and after seven days' confinement in New Bailey lockups , was liberated ~* upon finding two sureties of £ 200 each , and himself in <\ £ 400 , to appear at Liverpool , and answer to the second i cbarge of conspiracy . That your petitioner appeared at ^
Liverpool , when the first charge upon which yaui pett- 5 tioner was arrested , and after suffering thirteen days' | confinement under the circumstances above mentioned ' ^ the indictment against your petitioner was abandoned ! I and , aa he believes , from a knowledge tbe prosecutor -i had that his witnesses were most grossly and foully t perjured , and that your petitioner had ample means to ^\ prove them so . That your petitioner has great reason IP * to complain ot the unconstitutional conduct pursued ^ j towards him by the authorities and police of Mancfce * . pter ; your petitioner , therefore , prays that your honour , f able Houbo will be pleased to institute an immediate % inquiry into your petitioner ' s case . " Thus , then , the **' result was , that when they went to trial at Liverpool t ^
the whole cbarge was abandoned , and thus these mea W were kept nineteen days in prison without bail , when * * it was clear , from the very commencement , that the ^ whole charge most be abandoned . After snch a pro- % - ceedi g , it waa monstrous to t&lk to them of justice to -fr ** these individuals . Mr . Leach stated that he bad been I " confined with Messrs . Turner , Tinker , and Seddons . " *; He ( Mr . Duncombe ) should now call the attention of ; the House to the cases of Mr . Turner and three other persons , some of whom bad been confined for thirteen j ~ days , and some for nineteen days . Mr . Turner was a £ 1 - in Manchester
highly respectable printer , and the sup- s » posed offence with which he was charged was the *"" printing the placard which waa allied to the door of Leach , and for which he was apprehended . For this Mr . Turner was taken up , and confined in one of the cells of the Town-hall for three or four days before he was examined . Wh * n he was arrested , also , a very great outrage was committed with respect to two of bis apprentices , who were carried away , by the superfa . tendent of police ( Mr . Beswick ) under the pretext that if the apprentices appeared before the magistrates with Mr . Turner they could get back earlier to tell the result
to Mrs . Turner . Tbe ATTORNEY-GrBNERAE asked whether this waa alleged in any petition from this person ? r Mr . T . Duncombe said that Mr . Turner bad not \ presented any petition to the House , but he bad been \ requested by that individual , and by Mr . Tinker and ( Mr . Seddons , to make their respective cases known to t the houie . Turner , then , was carried to the cells , and I * after the lapse of time which he had already described , | and after all the impediments which hid been throws I in his way of getting bail , be was liberated . Tomer , on £ . hearing the nature of the charge against him , and be- ? ' lieving that he had been guilty of no offence , on bis :. trial at Liverpool pleaded guilty to the mere cireum- : '
stance of having printed the placard , and since then t he had not been called up for judgment . B < it ; was this £ an offence of such a nature that a person merely charged 1 ' with it should be locked np in a felon ' s cell , not more i than thirty inches wide , and where there was not cap * . \ biiity for four men to sleep , and where the place wai \ swarming with vermin ? This wa 8 a most revolting s ^ proceeding towards those who were presumed to be * - ? innocent in the eye of the law —( bear ) . The appren- {? tices were carried away under the pretence that they % would shortly return and inform Mrs . Turner of the « , ' result ; but instead of that they were conveyed to t&B If * * Isle of Man and kept thereof or the purpose of * giving f * information and evidence against their employer ^ Thesa t 1 apprentices were kept ia the Isle of Man until tfa f ^ special commission sat at Liverpool last October . Ag js- " -j he had just stated , Mr . Turner , thinking that be bai fjfj ~ 5 been guilty of no harm in printing this paper , when * * > 3 his trial cane on pleaded guilty , and what was there- . ? > i eult ?—why that be bad not been brought up for jnd > $ M ment . When the persons who were engaged in getting ^~ % up the cases for the prosecution at this commission found JL 3 ?
that they could rnnke nothing of the apprentices , and - ? £ l that they were not necessary for the prosecution of theft FJ % employer and the other persons against whom charga jg ^ had been brought respecting the placard , they sent tin &M superintendent of police to . Mr . Turner , and said tost ffj he must take back his apprentices . Mr . Tamer replied , ^ S no , they had left his service , to the great injary of Us riljSf business , and the persons who had induced them to 4 ) |^ S so were the responsible parties . Upon this Mr . Be * jfef wich , thinking to alarm Mr . Turner , pulled oat alette && which be alleged be had received from Mr . Gregory , ^ g = |] the gentleman who was sent down by the Government %$ to investigate the cause of these disturbances , and read ft . Mi it to him , in which it was stated , thatif Mr . Turns ipi |< did not take back the boys , that the Government wouH rC * &
have him up to London , and proceed to have sentena W £ m passed upon him . Now he tMr . DancQm . be ) should lib ' My to see tbe Government which would , after this , brisj t * up this person for judgment because be did not compfy Cjf with the orders which were alleged to have been mai || c respecting these apprentices by Mr . Gregory , an 1 whom , | f by the bye , he still refused to receive . Tben , wili I respect to the cases of Messrs . Tinker and Seddons ; ha | j c thought that tbeir treatment bad been atill worse . B 2 » would rr- ad to the House a statement which bad bees s M p maiie to him on this point by these twe persons ,. Thtj Ho stated— "Oa the 146 h of August , 1842 , we , Isaae fflk Tinker and George Seddon were apprehended and taket g ^ fi oin our beds at two o ' clock in the morning by tin gSi superintendent of the police , R'chard Beswick , and i K 3 j numerous body of special constables and soldiers . Wi ? Sf 5 i
were then taken to the Town Hall , Manchester , an ! : gp after undergoing the ordeal of searching were locked pKfiB up , without an bearing before a magistrate , ore » ijsyS mination during a period of six days / that is to say , fro » y $ * fi two o ' clock on tbe morning of Sunday , ontil ten o'clod j gfi sk am . on the following Friday . At this period ( Friiaj ) > K | p wa were brought before the stipendiary magistrate , Mr . & $ sJt Maude , when Beswick , not being prepared with eii Ib ^ 'lt dence , we were remanded until the following Tuesday . § £ * $ On this occasion our able barrister , Mr . Green , provd fj £ & that the Beveral charges of the indictment were oo | J f ^ sl misdemeanour offences . The offieer who apprehended g ^ jll us refused to shew bis authority for so doing . W » 'fet * were again remanded till the following Friday , ¦ who , , 'fe ^ B no evidence being forthcoming , we were again remandd jft ^ jfc till the Tuesday next : we were then brought op in I $ . "Ju
close court , and our friends refused admission . Mi l- >>< 3 >' Beswick again appeared , but stated that he had n jj ££ evidence to adduce , although he confessed , 'he hid t * , * ransacked tho town for that purpose . ' We were no * e - * ^ *» admitted to bail , to appear again iu a fortnight , arf {^ -P were compelled to End two bona fide sureties of £ 1 * ¦^ JP each . At the time appointed we again appeared i ^ J - * the Borough Court , when Beswick having commuii " * ~* £ cated to tbe magistrates that there waa no evidence , <• , /*¦ ^ J ™ wero dismissed . You will thus perceive "we were h , ~ f * prison nineteen days , and eleven dajson bail . Iu cor i * "j elusion , it may be well to state that we have both be * _? -. unemployed since that period , and have sc arcely it r ^ S ! chance of succeeding again . Seddon , who is a delict £ j £ f jj man . is fast declining , and Tinker and family are suff * ^^~ iug severely . " These persons were in prison in UA bm > i
way for nineteen days , and there never was a grew § gpf *~ violation of the liberty of the subject than in this pfl- ^ R £ r ceeding . It might be well te state that these me ¦ Hi WgSL been almost constantly out of employment eim jpJj jE that period , and they assured i him that there was scaiaff t £ . JL any chance of their obtaining it again . iW ji ^ this do not fr .-ll him that this was law , or anything 1 * | g < - VE law , for the Habeas Corpus Act wjs virtually and pr »» |?; t * g ( t ' cally repealed if such proceedings as these ware to » jf- % ) m tolerated . From the case of Leach and his associate -g _ j | j in the prison , he would proceed to that of Skevingt * ft : ~ This person , in the petition which he presented to ttl J [ ' ££ House , stated that " in the month of August last tU < ^ ^ people deemed it right to cease working , but wf lj ^ * peaceable . On the day before the people stin * 0- fa ( Thursday , Augnst 18 th ) , the magistrates of this & ^ 7 ^ , trict commenced swearing in constables ; and on tbe & ^ - ^^ day , the day the people struck , theyswora nrtbe w-to * | ,, % g day—they sworn in , drinking at the public expen * < " ~ ttt A peaceable meeting was held at six o ' ciock ia ** ;„ - ^ evening , and notwithstanding the two special cons * ' .
^ bles endeavoured to make a disturbance the people-sfj * |^ ^ jj rated quietly , intending to meet at eight the same nigft * J ^ j ( but tbe constables being so drunk , and anxions for * " -j * po riot , the meeting was given up , to show that the peof » ' /^ an ; were for peace . The magistrates continued at tJ » jp ^ lej public office , and had the attendance of pcliceme * i ^ tw pensioners , and special constables , wbieh caused boj » p ^ ei and girls to assemble , from curiosity , when , no disttf f ^ int bance having taken placa , the riot act was read . 0 s ~^^ hj the following niormue , the 20 th of August , I w ; * . * j ^ ilSui rested at my own door , ou a charge of using seditio" ^ JJb £ language , about one or two hundred policemen , pij" t- » paa j (
loners , and constables , with the head of ttj ¦ J | I | n i police , coming for ms , and I was taken be . «» §|| fph € tbe magistrates , Messrs . Philips and Diwson , « £ Inuu the Rev . J . Dudley . On the testimony of one « £ |||| hi stable , whose evidence was refuted by three witness * |||| lui I was ordered to find bail to keep the peace for ** || pii mouths , only one hour being allowed to obtain » § Bg * 1 Bom fide bail being then refused , I was co 0 ' ??^ llta , Luicester , escorted out of the town by aboutrW . ||§> ef . policemen , pensioners , and constables , and nine soW ^ mr ** with drawn swords , tbe soldiers and four polices'" |||| aU going all the way with me . At Leicester I was-tre «*» |||] bn as a felon , and HtoH on felon ' s fare , washed w Vz-. JBntb
bath , prison dress , l&c . j remaining there till the W * ||| ne of August , when the difficulties thrown in th ^^; j § PPrJ of bail were removed . Your petitioner further ^" .-gBlie . to stats , tLaton the following Monday some & «»» 'IB ** were taken up on the highway , and required to ^ jHMi bail for having walking-sticlw . On Tuesday ^^^ |® Nl scouting parties were sent out , one of which . . fW" gfgoc ! some men at tbe monastery , where soup is gives a » W H&q they brought them away as beggars , getting W ^ B * five o ' clock the same evening ; and after nine , ^ i £ , ^ lot tbey cad been seat to bed , tbe magistrates bad ^" -i'B * * called tig , and committed for one month , ^^ SS ¦ t etil because he was kno % n to be a Chartist , to J& * K& * months" barcl Jabonr . * With mpect to tbe «^ " £ ¦ *»! had been taken into custody , and who hid W ^ -Mld ; Iuded to by the petitioner , be iMr . D oticwnbe ) . ^^ MWhi received a representation regarding their ' - « *| 2 m " RN person of thename of Warner , whichhe wonld resa ^^ Kioq < House . This paper was dated LdughboroV and Vxof ££ » V | " John Mee and otters were taken up on the 22 no _ .. ¦ toy ; August , by Ibe inspector and thirteen of the eorn ^ - ;«*• police , aimed with swords and cutlasses . Tney w > r ^¦ faj ; Continued in our seventh page . J KS "
Untitled Article
6 THE NORTHERN STAR " 1 ' - ~~— ' — ' ' . . - —— . * — ... . ______ — i m
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), April 8, 1843, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct645/page/6/
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