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SPBBCH OF ARTHUR O'CONNOR , IN THE IRI 8 H HOUSE OP COMMONS , ON MOITOAY , MAY 4 TH , 1785 , ON THE CATHOLIC BILL . f Conelvded from our iasUJ « I IS »« " •> £ •» m the eyw of weak and timid toen , who subscribe to the doctrine , that reformation i * the parent of KTolntwn , J . shall appear as one who baa entered on & delicate subject with too much free-, ! , * " » d * «« roa 8 man , ** a Jacobin , as one that ¦• omld embroe my hands in the Wood of his countrymen . Bui I -win appeal from tu& contemptible de-« idon to the Bonnder judgment of those , who subscribe to the safer doctrine , that abuses are the parent of revolution , and that a . timely and Radical Reform of tboae abuses , as well as in Church as in State , are the &B ^ ra ! ^^^ . ^^^ ^ miSK
<* dy aeettrity against those cosvalaioBB , which shake oeiety to Us foundation . An eye-witness to the korrora of a reTolution in another country , I must be mote than a monster to wish to see them raging in my « wn > But if ever there was a time when it behoved men in public stations to be explicit , if ever there was a time when those scourges of the human race , called politicians , should lay aside their duplicity and their finesse , it is the present moment Be assured , the people of this country will so longer bear that their -welfare shall be made the sport of a few family factions ; be assured they are convinced their true inters consists in putting down men of self-creation , who haTe no object in view but that of aggrandising themselves and
their families , at the expense of the public ; and in setting up men who shall represent the nation , who ahall be accountable to the nation , an 4 ¦ who shall do the business of the nation . And if I could bring my mind to suspect that my Catholic countrymen , after they had been embodied in the constitution amidst their Protestant and Presbyterian f « llow citizens , would basely desert the common cause of our general freedom , by enlisting under the banners of this or that family monopolist , I should conceive that , in having been the advocate for their emancipation , I had been the advoeaie for their disgrace But bonovr , interest , and the r ising spirit of the nation , forbid such , unworthy snspieioms .
" If I was to judge by the dead silence with which this is received , I should inspect what I have said was sot Yery palatable to some men in this Hou « e ; but I have not risked connexions endeared to me by every tie of blood and friendship , to support one j » et of men in preference to another : I have hazarded too mu"h to allow the "breath of calumny to taint the objects I have had in view , from th « part I have taken , Immutable principles , on whieh the happiness sad liberty of my countrymen depend , convey to my mind the only sub-¦ tantial boon for which great sacrifice * should be made . I might allay the fears of the Protestant monopolists for what , in the tone spirit of political bigotry , they call their Protestant ascendancy , by stating , that as the boroughs continue in toe hands of Protestant proprietors , centuries must pass away before the -Catholics
can participate , in . any considerable portion , of the political power of Quax country . But I am contending for the parity of the constitution , not for its abuses , I disclaim contending for Catholic freedom , in the hope that the grant may be a dead letter . I disclaim contending for Catholte freedom , in the hope that the righto and liberties of my country may continue to be monopolised , in the same manner , after their emancipation as they -were before . Bat I here avow myself thejealott * and aamett advocate for the most unqualified emancipation of my Catholic countrymen , in the bope , and oonvietien , that the monopoly of the rights ¦ nd liberties of my cosntry , which has hitherto eflfectwatty withstood the « 8 bxts of a part of the people , mart yield to the unanimnas will , to the decided interesV and to the general dfrrt of a whole united people . It is from this conviction , and it is far that
toMcenaaaay ratpgctaat object , that ( while toe Noble lard tKagsbwwBgb ] « 4 ttM Bight Hon . Secretary , an ogling » rijktheir lira and fortunes in support of a system that militates against th * liberty of my countrymen ) I will risk everything dear to me * on earth . It is far this great object I have , I fear , more than risked connections dearer to me than life itself But he must be a spiritless man , and this a spiritless nation , not to resent the ~ hayin <> iM of a British Minister , -who has raised oar hop * in order to seduea a rival to share with him the disgrace of this accursed political crusade , and Marts them after , that he may degrade a competitor to tae ^ station of a dependant ; and , that he nay destroy friendship his nature never knew , he has portedwith the feelings of awhole nation ; raising the
cup with onehand to the parched lip of expectancy , he has dashed H to the earth with the other , in all the ^ antounen of Insult , and wfth all the aggravation of contempt Does he imagine , that the . people of this coontey , " -after he has tantalised them with the cheerinSh ope < Sf present aBevfetioB , and of future prosperity , will tamely bare to be forced to a re- « n < Iursjice of their former Bufferings , und to a re-appointment of their former spoOen ? Does he , from confidence of long * uceets in debauching the human mind , exact from yon , calling yomdves tfie representatives of th » people of Ireland , to reject a Bill , which has received the . uaaimou consent of your constituents ! or does be me » n to puxde the versatile disposition of this Bonso , on wbiea'bebsa made so many successful expej b
tajests beady , y-dista * engyotti > etween ooedience to hit imperious mandates , and obedience to the will of the people you shoeJd represent * or does-he flatter himself that , became he has succeeded in betraying his own country , into exchanging that peace , by which she might have retrieved hershattered finances , for a war , in 'which he has squandered twenty times a greater treasure , in the coarse of two years , than with all his timed economy , be had been able to save , in the eofcrse of ten ; for a war in whieh the prime youth of the world have been offered up , victims to his ambition and his chemes , as boundless and presumptuous , as ill-concerted and in-combined ; for a wsr in which the plains of every nation in Europe have been crimsoned with oceans of Wood ; for a war ia which his country has reaped nothing but disgrace , and whieh must ultimately prove her ruin ? Does he flatter himself , that he win be enabled , Satan like , to end his political career by involving the whole empire in a civil war , from which
nothing can accrue , but a doleful and barren conquest to the victor ! I trust the people of England are too 'wise and too just to attempt to force measures upon us they would reject with disdain themselves ; ' I trust they have not so soon forgotten the lesson they so reeaotly learnt from America , which should . serve as a luting example to nations , against employing force to suMue the spirit of a people determined to be free . ' But if they ahould be bo weak , or * o wicked , as to Buffer themselves to be » edueed by a "m i to whose fonl duplicity and finesse is as congenial , as ingenuousness and fair dealing is a stranger ; to become the instruments of supporting a few odious public characters in power and rapacity , against the interest and against the sense of a whole people . Jf we are to be dragooned into measures against our will , by a nation that would lose her last life , and expend her last guinea , in resenting a similar insult , if offered to herself : I trust in God , she will find in the people of this country a spirit in no wise inferior to her own .
" You axe as Una moment at the most awful period of yonr lives : the Minister of England has committed yon with your country , and on this night your adoption or rejection of this Bill , must determine in the eyes of the Irish nation , which you represent , the Minister of England , or tile people of Ireland ! And although you are convinced you do not represent the people of Ireland ; although you are convinced , every man of yen , that you are self-created , it does not alter -the nature of tbB contest , it is still a contest between the Minister of England and tbe people ot Ireland ; and the weakness of your title should only make you the more circumspect in the exercise of your power . Obey the British Minister ; disregard the voice of tbe people : France must have lost her senses if she hesitates what part she
will take ; it u not an eighty-fourth department you will have moulded to her wishes ; -it is not simply a La Vendee you will have kindled in the bosom ef your country . For if you shall have once convinced fbe people of this country that yoa are traitors to them , and hirelings to tbe Minister of an -avaricious domineering nation , under the outward appearance of a sister country . If you shall have convinced the people of this country , that the free national constitution for ¦ which they were committ ed , sod for -which they risked -everything d&arto tiiem in 1 ? SS , has been destroyed Dy the bribery of a British Minister , and the unexampled renality of an Irish Parliament . If you shall have
convinced them that , instead of rising and falling with England , they are never to rise , but when she has been humbled by adversity , and that they must fall , when « ho becomes elated by prosperity . If you shall have convinced the people of this country , that instead of reciprocal advantage , nothing is to be reaped from their connection with England , but supremacy and aggrandisement on one aide , and a costly venality , injury , insult , degradation , and poverty on the other , it is human nature , that you shall have driven the people of this country to court the alliance of any nation able and willing to break the chains of a bondage not more galling to their feelings than restrictive of their
pres" Tbe Gentlemen at the opposite side of . the Hense have attempted to influence you by the mention of Jackson : so will L Read his correspondenceIwith your enemy , and yon wul find a volume of instruction in eterj line be has written . If the people of this country do enjoy the Constitution in Church and State , why has he found the people of the one country freer from thai oppression which goads nations into all the honors of a rerolntion ? Why has he found the people of the other more highly sublimated to his purpose ? Examine the . whole of his iatalllgenee , and you will find the weakness of your esonfary in the conduct you have panned , and in the converse of that conduct only you can establish her strength . Do not depend on the
bayonet for tke support of your measure ; believe me , that ia . proportion as your measures reqnir * farce to support them , in an exact proportion are they radically « nd miMhleTQUly bad . Believe me , there ia more itfwiigUi in the a&ctioni and confidence of thft people , than if you were to convert every second house in the cation into barracks for your soldiery . And when the GentlemsB < Cufie and BingBboroagh ) whom I have heard tbis night ten yon , that to act in contempt of the public opinion , is spirit and firmness ; and that , to act with a fe at respect for that opinion , ia timidity and ow « rdioe ; they make the character of the -Legislator to * merge into the ^ w ^ t of ^ a duellist ; '"" 1 they set yoo upon splitting point * of honour with your fongtfUmr U Ia it sot enough that you live in the
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age and in the midst of the horrors of revolutions , to deter you from acting in contempt of the public opinion ? Have you not had examples enough to convince you , that men la throwing off the russett frock for tbe uniform of the soldier , do not at all times throw away the ties of kindred and of blood f Have you not had examples enough to convince you , that even soldiers cannot at all times be brought to shed the blood of their parents , their kindred , and their friends ? And have you not had a great and memorable example to convince you , that the soldiers of an odious Government may become the soldiers of the nation ? If these are plain truths , this is the time to tell them . If I speak daggers to you , it is that neither you nor my country may ever feel them . Bnt if you wish to be deceived . hearken ^ " midst the horrors revolutions , to
to thosft men who are interested in risking everyhing that they may continue to monopolise the whole political power of yonr country . Hearken to those men who are interested in risking every thing , that they may contisue to draw their better inheritance from the sale of the welfare of your country ; but let me caution you , whose property is too considerable to be hasarded is the base pursuit after the rights and property of your enslaved and impoverished countrymen , to take care what part you act on this night ; let me caution yon , that the decision of this night , goes much further than even the important bill under your consideration . Ton , none of yon , can be ignorant that the British Minister has designs in procrastinating this question , to procure ad vantages for-bis own country , at the expense of yours , " greater than she was capable of receiving since the Revolution , at least since the Union . " And so stronlgy impressed is this on the
public mind , that you who shall on this night vote for the rejection of this bill , will appear in the eyes of the Irish nation , not only as men votiog in obedience to the British Minister , against the voice of the people , but as men voting for an Union with England , by which this country is to be everlastingly reduced to the state of an abject province . Fortunately the views of tbe British Minister have been detected ; fortunately the people of this eountry se « hba in his true colours ; like the desperate gamester , who has lost his all , in the wildest schemes of aggrandisement , he looks round for some dupe to supply him with the further means of future projects ; and , in the crafty subtleness of his soul , he fondly imagines he has found that easy dupe in the credulity of the Irish nation . After he has exhausted his own country in a crusade against that phantom , political opinion , he flatters himself , he will be enabled to resuscitate her at the expense ef yours .
"As yon value the peace and happiness of your country ; as you value the rights and liberties of the soil that has given you birth ; and if you are not lost to every sense of feeling for your own consequence and importance as men , I call on you this night to make your stand . I call on you to rally round the independence of your country , whose existence has been so artfully assailed . Believe mo , the British Minister will leave you in the lurch , when he sees that the people of this nation are too much in earnest to be tricked out of their rights , or the independence of their eountry ; after he sees that they have . heen sufficiently alarmed at seeing the tame men who uniformly opposed the independence of their country , when it was a question in this House in 1782 , recalled into power
when that independence was to be attacked in 85 , when he has gained his ends of you , and when he had made you the instruments by which he shall have so divided and disgraced the opposition of England , as to reader it Impossible to form an efficient Government out of his opponents , he will make his peace with this country , by conceding this measure , leaving you " fixed figures for the band of scorn to point its slow and moving finger at" Gracious God ! that you should fall into that very error , which has so recently overwhelmed a great nation in xoch unheard-of calamities : Will yon not take warning from the fate of tbe Government ft ! FrfcneA , -which , by not adaptfhg its conduct to the changes of tbe public mind , has brought rniaon itself , and devastation on its country J
" What a display of . legislation have we had on this night ? Artificers who neither know the foundation on which the work , the instrument * they ought to use , nor the materials required 2 Ia it on the narrow basU ef monopoly and exclusion you would erect a template the grovring liberty or your country ? Ii it by foreign troops you would lead the ardent spirit of your ooon trymen ? Is it in the fusty record * of barbarous ages you would seek for that existent mind to which yoa should adapt your laws ! If you will legislate , know that on the broad basis of immutable justice only , yoa can raise a lasting , beauteous temple to the liberty of your Island ; whose ample base shall lodge , and whose roof shall shelter her united family from the rankling inclemency of rejection and exclusion . Know that reason is that ailfcen thread by -which the lawgiver leads his peoplfi ; and , above all , know that ia the knowledge of the temper of the public mind , consists tbe skill and the wisdom , of tbe legislator .
" Do not imagine that the minds of your countrymen have been stationary , while that of all Europe has been rapidly progressive ; for you must b « blind not to perceive , that the whole European mind . has undergone a revolution , neither confined to this nor to that country , but as general as the great causes which have given It birth , and still continue to feed its growth . Jo v&in do these men , who subsist bat on th « abuses of the Government under which they live , flatter themselves that what we have B&en these last six years is but the fever of the moment , which , frill pass away as toon as the patient has been let blood enough . As well may they attempt to alter the course of nature , with « ut altering her laws . If they would tfiect a counter revolution in the European mind , they must destroy
commerce and its effects ; they must abolish every trace of the mariner ' s compass ; they must consign every book to the flames ; they must obliterate every vestige of the invention of the press ; they must destroy the conduit , of intelligence , by destroying the institution of tbe post-office ; then , and not till then , they and their abuses may live on , in all the security which ignorance , superstition , and want of concert in the people can bestow . Bat while I would overwhelm with despair those men who have been nursed in the lap of venality and prostitution ; who bavo been educated in contempt and ridicule of a love for their country ; and who have grown grey in scoffing at every thing like public spirit , let me congratulate every true friend to mankind , that that commerce which has begat so much independence ,
will continue to beget more ; and let me congratulate every friend to the human species , that the press , which has sent such a mass of information into the world , win continue , with accelerated rapidity , to pour forth its treasures so beneficial to mankind . It is to these great causes we are indebted , that the combination of priests and despots , which so long tyrannised over the civil and political liberty of Europe , has been dissolved ; it is to these great causes we are indebted , ihat no priest , be his religion what it may , dare preach the doctrine , and that no man believes the doctrine which inculcates the necessity of sacrificing every right and every blessing thu world can afford , as the only means of obtaining eternal happiness in the life to come . This was the doctrine by which the despotism of Europe was so long supported ; this was the doctrine by which the political Popery of Europe was supported ; but the doctrine and the despotism may
now sleep in the same grave , until the trumpet of ignorance , supersition , and bigotry , shall sound their resurrection ! Thanks be to God , the European mind demands more snbstantial food than the airy nothing of metaphysical belief . Thanks be to God , the absurdity of one set of men framing opinions for other men to believe , upon a Bubject which neither have faculties to understand , has been exploded ; and that every heart and every mind is anxiously engased in perfecting a civil and political code , which , as it is within the scope , so it is the most important concern of every nation on the globe . And so far from believing they would earn Heaven by a base dereliction of their rights , they are firmly convinced that , in promoting the true , civil , and political rights of man , they are advancing human society to that state of perfection it was the design of the Creator it should attain ; convinced that the cause of freedom is the cause of God . "
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* See Lord Fitzwilliam ' s Letter , printed for J Debrett
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BTOCKPOKT . VISIT OF DR . M'DOUALL , THE PATRIOT . CONGRATELATOBT ADDRESS . On Thursday evening last , the 27 th inst ., Dr . Peter Murray M'Douall vmted this town , by invitation , for the purpose of addressing tbe inhabitants in support of the principles and rights of the People ' s Charter . He eccordingly arrived at this towntrom Bol ton about tire o ' clock ; and at six o ' clock he joined a tea party at Mr . Peter ChippeUVthe Co-operative Store Establishment , Park-street , and was received with the cordial welcome of some staunch aud consistent Chartists . Of the number were the wives of the incarcerated Chartists in Chester
Castle—a circumstance which gave to the scene a character of unuFual interest , and which will aoHail to have its due effect . The oread which wag made for the occasion was provided by Mr . James Wragg , confectioner , Heaion-lane , and which , with Mr . Chappell ' s preparations , elicited the admiration * nd expressed satisfaction of the patriotic company . The party were , moreover entertained by some soulinspiring addresses of Mr . M'Douail and others . While they were enjoying themselves at Mr . Chappell ' s , other persons were seen by crowds making the best of their way to the National Charter Association Rooms , Bomber ' s Brow , where it was announced by placard that the Doctor would deliver a lecture upon the Charter . The meeting was fixed clock
for half-past seven o ' , and the admission to be by ticket only . In spite of this precation , the avidity of the people was snch that the tickets were boHght up ; and at seven o ' clock the room , which would accommodate between eight and nine hundred persons , was crowded to an inconceivable state of inconvenience , whilst there were upwards of two thousand persons waiting outside anxious to gain admission by paying the money at the door . Soon after the hoar appointed , the way to tbe rooms was so crowded by disappointed applicants , that it was found necessary to call out a vehicle to convey Dr . M'Douail and his friends to the meeting ; and on their arrival the plaudits of the people , at the sight of their old speaker , made tbe Yery
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" welkin ring . ' With some difficulty M'Donallwas led in front of the meeting on the platform , and was received with renewed cheering . Before the proceedings commenced , however , it was found absolutely necessary , for the health and safety of the company , to introduce a current Of air , and this could only be accomplished by breaking several windows behind the Chairman , the heat of the room at the time being excessive . Mr . Peter Chappeu . was , ttna voce . called to preside . Having read the placard , he said that the meeting was an important one ; and , therefore , he did not consider it necessary for him to call noon "welkin ring . " With some difficulty M'Donallwas
tkem to observe order or to pay attention to such a patriot as Mr . M'Donall . He hoped if there was anything especiallyinteresting orinstrnctive dropped from his lips , they would takfrlt home with them and cherish it , and improve upon the example . ( Hear . ) After paying a high eulogium upon Mr . M'Douall ' s public character and public sufferings for the sake of the people , the Chairman called upon Mr . Joseph Carter to read the congratulatory address of the committee on behalf of the inhabitants of Stockport to the above patriot . Mr . Carter accordingly came forward , and read tbe following able and spirited address amidst great applause : —
TO US . PETER MURRAY M ' DOUALL . We , the inhabitants of Stockport , beg leave to congratulate you upon your release from the unmerited imprisonment which you have undergone for advocating the rights and liberties which base and cowardly Whig and Tory Administrations have taken , and at the hazard of all that is dear to this nation , still continue to take away from the working people , whose condition wants nothing of slavery but tbe name . It is a further source of congratulation that the imprisonment designed to sink you in public estimation has made you soar in patriotic fame ; and Wei in the fulness of onr hearts , do sinoerely and " anxiously desire thai you and all your contemporary advocates of Chartism , whether imprisoned or expatriated , may receive that justice from posterity which is denied you now ; and that yonr names may appear aa brilliant stars upon the historian ' s page destined to immortalise them .
We also congratulate you upon the advancing and cheering prospects of Chartism , which indicate the political emancipation of the unenfranchised working men at no distant period . Then will the persecuted advocates of human rights and equal laws rejoice in the fruit of their labour , and the internal peace and tranquillity of all classes and conditions ; they will live honoured , and daily receive ten thousand benedictions , while the names of their Right Honourable oppressors ( like the name of Nero ) will become dogs * names—will be exeorated , and their dark , assassin-like actions stink from generation to generation , to the end of time . The sun and sfcy never lent their light to more deceitful and hypocritical tyrants than the Government which endeavoured to crush when tb « y oould not refute you . They appear to indulge an atheistical confidence of being irresponsible in both worlds , through upholding the most expensive Church
listablisbmeni in tbe world . Christianity ( part and parcel of the law of our land ) is renounced in legislation , and trampled upon in judicature . Hence , prisons are not intended for reformation—that being impossible under the incessant insults , degradation , and rigours which none but demons . incarnate oould denge and impose . They are traps set by population exterminators—for mWa lives are made miserable 4 J cut short , though not instantly destroyed , by tnCsas of Marcus . This might sometimes beap-P 5 S ? - * , 4 tmwpherp « f inowoerited politicians , when the pliindenng factious dfi&irc their removal . We dare not trust ourselves to characterise those of that faction when they join in the Christian worship , which prays for V a } l iha ***© ia prison . ^ John Bull should , berppreaea ^ i wjjhjft ctof en foot destroying the young , and trampling umn millions insulted by the term of Uroi-born fofUaiaitB 5 aud the emigrant or exile may with justice and truth sing the following adiept to th'ia ruined nation : — - .. . .
' - ' Farewell , 0 Britannia ! for ever farewell , Thou hot-bed of rognea—thou t « ne « tria ! hell ' -j Where Satan has fixed his beafrq&trters on earth , And utlawed integrity , - wisdom , and worth"Where villany thrives , aad where honesty begs —• Where folly ia purse-proud , and wisdom in rags—Where , as man i » worth nothing ; « a » pt in one sense , Which they always compote in pounds , hillings , and . . pence— .: .. v - ¦ ,: ; . ¦ - , -.. I ' ..- ,-r - ¦ ¦¦ : ¦ ¦ : ' . ¦ Where they worship a calf , if like Aaron ' s of Old—Where tb « -Dem may nlgn tf tits wtptrtf be gold . "
Sit , your maanauimoua and uncompromuiog advocacy of our rights anil liberties—the sacrifices you : have made for tit and the . country—th $ dangers you have encountered and deipfaed—the Impressions you have made upon both tbe frjenda and upoa the foea of liberty , arid your unconqufirabje devotion to the cause of freedom , which no . engine [ of . menacing tyranny could subdue , h * s rsjged you in our esteem to the first degree . ; . ' , . ,.. May you ever be pro ^ ec ? ed . from the snares and power orthe enemy . May yon , J « ng Iiye inthe happy enjoyment of yW well ^ erWd honour , and imperisbsbk satfofuetfto of iri a 6 p £ oYinfemind , till the wafis and towerf of / cdrwptifltfc like . Aoae of Jericho , shall tor at ttfB ' wduhd ^ fW . Cuartist horns .
That that-day * ay"febbii arrive : to > ej » rard ; you . and deliver tbiaF * ppre » jg « id ! flition " , If'tnfcliJfibere desire of yourm « t < tevflte ^ fr ^ as ' at ^ &kp (> rt . '" .. The iM > adiri £ t > f the e ' wJuifaeitt'W $ frequently interrupted bymarkB 'br « tfbro . tiatroti ; iiid afte > the applause at the oontfnrfon h&f subsided , : ' : The CHAifiHAN ^ t 6 sdio tntrVJduce the talented and undaunted advocate of the People ' s Charter—Dr . M'Douall . ( Cheeririj ; . ) " ; Dr . M'DduAix then came forward , and spoke nearly to tbe following effect : —My friends and fellow Chartists , I thank you , the men of Stockport , for the cheers with which you have received me , and especially -to thank you for the address whieh you have prepared , and which ha 3 now been
read to me . But whilst I am sensible of the sincerity of these cheers , I do not allow myself to forget that they are only meant for my principles , and not for the man . I take this manifestation on your part , that you , the men of Stockport , are alive to the cau ? e—that you are absolutely and resolutely determined to have " the Charter , the whole Chatter , and nothing but the Charter . " ( Cheers . ) It is for this reason that I thank youit is for tbat reason that I accept your cheers and thisaddrera . Had it been intended merely for me as an individual , I Bhould not have looked upon it with that pleasure ; but I receive it as an earnest that you know your rights , and , knowing them , are determined to have those rights . ( Cheers . ) I have
long studied your condition , and the condition of rhe working people » t large . -. -I studied them long before I came into tbe clutches of the bloody Whigs , I have studied them whilst I have been in their prisons , and I will study them now- I am out . Whilst I was in I had ample opportunities of maturely deliberating upon your condition , and I saw plainly and clearly the unmitigated wrongs under which you are labouring at the present time ; and , eeeing these wrongs , I have determined to come forward , as an individual , to try to remove them . ( Applause . ) Wh « n I saw the justice and reasonableness of the Charter , and' when the working people were simply demanding justice , I came for < - ward as an advocate of that justise . Nor hare I
yet been convinced that those demands were wrong for which you have been insulted , and for which I have suffered . And it is because I love these principles , and that I think that they are necessary , that 1 should be ready to suffer again . ( Hear . ) When I look at the Government , with a mere handful of the aristocracy , governing this nation , and making laws , not for the purpose of providing for the improvement of yonr condition—not for the purpose of adding anything to your wages—but solely to increase the splendour and opulence of these do-nothings . I feel myself justified in demanding the principles of the People ' s Charier . They are all in the enjoyment of riches and opulence and gorgeous palaces ; but when I look into your houses and see you stripped of all that eives
comfort—when I look into your rooms and see them deserted of really everything either valuable or useful , and yet toiling in vain , I was convinced that you were suffering an injustice , and I was determined to go against this injustice until we could destroy it . ( Hear and applause . ) I now clearly see that you are robbed of the fruits of your labour , and by vH . 8 Wfl ' cn are matle in Parliament , but over which the working people have no influence whatever . Seeing this robbery , it became very plain to me that the Government of this country was not a paternal one , and that , therefore , justice could not be done unless legislation was based upon the welfare and happiness of the working men of this country . When I saw the hand-loom weavers
passing away and literally fading away in penury from the face of the earth , and that every improvement in machinery tended to destroy deeper and deeper the labour of these oppressed hand-loom weavers , without their having the power to resist the evil influence of those improvements , it must be evident that the rights of labour were overlooked and spurned in the legislature . Bnt had they their due influence in asking those laws by which they affect to be governed , they might ere this have received some compensation for the loss of their labour . 0 , it ia painful to Bee the maggots securing all the consideration and benefit ot the laws they make , whilst the labourers and the hand-loom weavers axe
allowed to perkh and to pass away . ( Hear . ) I said , before the WhigB came upon me , what I now repeat , that justice must be done to the working people before this country can efficiently enjoy their nghts . I predicted what the effects would be ; and Ism sorry I have lived to eee the sufferings I foretold . I ask the block-printers , the hand-loom weavers , the spinners , the weavers , and the other branches of manufacture , whether , seeing all these things , observing the ruin of class after class , and man after man , seeing and feeling the destitution in yonr streets , and in your houses , whether yon do not want a power to make laws for this country , which , if they may not arrest the spirit of improvement ,
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may at least do justice to yourselves . Experience has proved to us that the persons at present entitled to make laws , pass them entirely for themselves , sj ^ for their owa BOpportr ; and the same experience ban likewise flonTinoed tis that , unless those laws spring froni the vrorkin /? Glasses , they will , like the Reform Bill , prove * neat delusion , and an injury to this country . Having seen the conduct of pur oppressors ^ in powtor , it la quite etear that all their measures are- intended to serve their own interests , at the expense of the universal ¦ welfare of this land ; it is , therefore , high time for yon to look about you ; to have an eye to what yon sign to the Legislature ; and to have nothing whatever to do with those measures , unless they directly approach your own may : at least ^ do justice to yourselves . Eiperience
interests ; whether it be oa tho subject of the Corn Laws , or any other question usually brought before the people for their support . ( Hear . ) I would , on this ground , recommend you to attend all the public meetings of your pretended friends ; but let them get them up at their own expense , for it is enough for you to support your own Chartist meetings . It will come to this at last—all will become selfish together ; and , as the aristooracy havo looked after themselves , you look after yourselves . ( Hear . ) £ have yet to see , my friends , any measure calculated to yield you equal justice with theChart * T—( cheers)—any measure that will so effsotually remove the evils under which you labour ; and , having seen none , in my opinion , possessing anything like its justice to
the working people and the nation at large , I am resolved , friends , resolved from this time forth , never to rest satisfied until the Charter—that best of measures—is passed . ( Hear , and cheering . ) You uever saw me follow any visionary schemes : that which I seek for is a reality ; and that which I now contend for are the rights of labour . ( Hear . ) There is no reality in your political privileges , unless it be the Charter . I hope you never will swerveirom that cause , —( " we never will ;) but be firm and united in your determination to havo w the Charter , the whole Charter , and nothing but the Charter . " One thing muBt not be overlooked—the power which masters have over the rights of labour and reduction of wages when they think proper , whilst you
have no power whatever to check this disposition of your oppressors , as you have too recently and too truly discovered . ( Hear . ) Let me ask you why the hand-loom weavers , block printers , spinners , and piecers should not receive a compensation for the loss of 1 their rights of labour , when you can send twenty millions to be distributed amongst the aristocracy for the loss of their slaves 1 Is it not a shame that these idlers should have twenty millions of the taxes which have been wrung from the hard earnings of the labouring classes r I , therefore , contend that the working people are entitled to compensation for a Iobs of their wages . They require it—it is nothing more than common justice , and then nothing would be heard " of their families voluntarily transporting themselves to other countries
for support . But away With your Emigration dubs , there ia no necessity for them . Every person who has been born in this country has a right to a livelihood in thia nation , as long as there is an acre of land in it ; ( Hear . ) Wby ^ hotild tTley ; be deprived of their wages—it is not fojr kny orinTethey hive committed—it is the injurious operation , of those laws over Whieh they- had no contfouT in making . Then look to the land of Great Britain , since your masters can reduce your wa ^ ea whenever they think proper . Thus your masters , by these' laws , have an uncontrollable influence over your sooial as well as your political condition in life , and yet you hare no power to say otherwise-Khear)—for it' so happens that after they have reduced your life by curtailing
the remuneration for your labour , they begin to Irivo you into the aubmiasion of other burdens , and if you rebel ; why then comes the bayouet or the bludgeon . ( Hear . ) If all these can be imposed upon the working people with impunity , one after auother , it conviucea me that you never will eujoy the full power and possession of yoar rights until the Charter is the law of this country . ( Cheers . ) Brother Chartists , I bave taken some interest in tho Republican States , and einoo I have left Chester Castle , I have received * letter from , the Republic of Texas . It is unnecessary ibr me to describe the condition of tbe labouring classes of this country ; and , in alluding to the comparative state of those in the Republic , I find that the
labourers there receive ten shillings a day . ( Hear . ) Yes , ten shillings a day are the t * te of wages paid to the free negroes of the Republic of Texas . I should like to know how many of yoa receive ten shillings a day—( h « ar )—how many do noi got ten shillingH for the whole week . Bat let as goon and contemplate the difference between the negroes of the Republic of Texas , and the free labourers of this country . The negroes are each allowed bo much land upon which they raise cattle , poultry , and . pigs , and grow Indian corn , the profits of which , upon sale , they put into their own pockots , and continue saving until at last they havo got as much as will purchase their freedom . Now , Sir , such is the condition of the negroes . Can you tell
me , any of you , of a factory slave having the wherewith to purchase five acres of land to-morrow ; or if he could , what time he could command for the purpose of ouUvvatiug it , or feeding your pigs and your cattle ? It would be a devilish long day that would ; give you an hour to walk iu your fields , and if you had fchati hoar , it would bo a devilish strong man that could , after toiling in a factory , from five in the moraine ( ill : seven or eight at night j attend to it , perfiOBaUy ; . tHear » hear . ) But if you , miscalled free labourers , jiad twenty shillings a day tomorrow , jipd had no political power , which the riegvQes in . the Texaahare , you would nevertheless be in > worse condition , as long as you bave to support an extravagant Crown , a luxurious Church , and a splendid aristocracy . ( Hear . ) Now , having
no power to reduce , or to check , or to controul the growing extravagance of these things , you see you are literally worse than the slaves in the Texas ; for they have two or three acres of land at their command to cultivate , the proceeds of which he is allowed to aell , and purchase his freedom with his money , and thus become a landlord . Why , Borne of you may work for ail hundred years , and not reach the condition of the negroes at Texas . I remember readiug the other day of a Bill having been brought before the assembly for the purpose of dividing and apportioning a largo plot of land amongst forty families . Do you think that forty families from the factories could be found in this country who had been enabled from the surplus
of their hard earnings to save sufficient to purchase a large estate ? (> ' We are in debt , we cannot keep straight , " and laughter . ) I believe you , and you will be no better off till you have the Charter . ( Hear . ) I know something about the valuation of an estate in Jamaica ; and I believe you cannot purchase a tolerable estate for less than £ 30 , 000 or £ 40 , 000 . Now , where must you find such a sum ! Well , then , if you are inferior to these negroea , you are i also inferior to those who have been emancipated in the West Indies by the sweat of your brow . Look at their condition , and compare it with yonr own . You have declined in yours since the year 1795 , because it was in that year we commenced warfare against the bravest and most intelligent race
of people in JSarope—he meant France . iHear . ) Then we began to strike down that noble banner from which the French people expected to enjoy ao much truo liberty and comfort . The speaker continued to trace the retrogression of the welfare of the British artisans , both in the price of the articles of food and the amount of wages , commencing with 1177 , iu which year an ox might be purchased for Is ., a sheep for 4 d ., and sufficient bread for 10 H men for Is . These statistics he continued down to 1801 , when the resources of the labourer were gradually curtailed , at the rate of 3 s . out of 9 a ., which robbery was for the purpose of supporting a pampered aristocracy , whilst the taxes and labour were increased inthe same proportion as his remuneration
diminished . Therefore ( continued Dr . M'Douall ) the moment you are thrown out of labour , you have a right to turn to the land of Great Britain , and thus demand justice for the robbery which was committed upon you in 1801 . The salaries of the Government officers are increased four times or thereabouts , whilst yours have gone the other way down . You cannot now , as the labourers did in Bury , Suffolk , in 1790 , with their 5 s . a-week purchase their bushel of malt , wheat , cheese , potatoes , and beef , and have a handsome surplus . No ; but had you had your political rights , you would not have permitted these acts of injustice and robbery to have been committed upon you . It is upon this ground that I come forward to defend your rights of labour —( applause ) ;—and I will persevere in spite of the Judge , the Jury , or thoir dungeons . ( Renewed applause . ) I shall go ou
supporting the grand principles of the Charter . The police , my friends , have been introduced into this country for the purpose of compelling you to Bubmit to the robberies to which I have alluded ; and if you will take notice , you will find that in all cases of Chartist prosecution , the chief witnesses were the bloody police . ( Hear . ) In my own case , they were the sole soldiers of the insurrection and instigators to disorder ; and then they come forward as witnesses against me , or you , as the case may be . The firat one who made his appearance In the box in my trial , was as eosey a looking fellow as you would see in a day ' s march , with his pot-belly andred-gills . He looked as though his father was a brandy bottle and his mother was a fishwife . ( Laughter . ) I could fancy him to be the tenant of a rum bottle , and , judging from his
vermilion eyes , I should say that he had been the essence of continual drunkenness all his life . ( Hear . ) This Sir John Falstaff , when be Had done , was really thought worthy of belief by the Judge . The next was a person somewhat smaller in size , looking like ft starved weasel that had been looked up for months . He turned ont to be sort of terrier to the bloodhound pack . ( Laughter . ) A poor scrawl ; he appeared as though he had been starved within an inch of his life and then drawn t trough a gimblet hole . He told the jury that he could not write , and the Judge that he could not read ; and yet he swore that he had taken down notes « t the meeting which I addressed , and which he pretended to have copied in bis deposition against me . ( Cfeers . ) But , what is more , the
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Judge believed all he said ! Here was Sir John on one side aud tbe weasel on the other , giving policemen ' s evidence , supported by one T—k—r , who . could not earn 7 s . 6 d . in his profession if the devil must fefcek nim , and is the brother-ia-law of one of the magietjrttea , Thomas Ashton , who prosecuted me for ejiKmining into and writing a pamphlet about his par / due of a factory . ( Shame . ) The next ! witness who was brought out was a olerk belonging to the Magistrates , who was thought of such little use upon his office stool , that he was turned out into the street to watch the proceedings of the procession , and endeavour to trump up a case . The other was a person who , I really believe , was never allowed to leave , his mother ' s apron strings before . Judge believed aUne saidt Here ' was Sir Johnon
( Laughter . ) He looked like a dancing master , hid hair being curled for the occasion , and having pumps upon his feet . I give him credit for all he said for this reason—ho had all the impudence of a monkey . and all the repetition of a parrot . ( Laughter . ) Tho Judge believed all they said ; because they swore hard , and did their duty , and so did I—with this difference , they did theirs , and were paid for it , and I did mine , and suffered for it . ( Hear . ) Collins , Lovett , and myself have been tried and convicted for our principles . We have now escaped the powers of their dungeons ; and what have the Whigs gained by it ! ( Hear . ) Have the Government , by their persecutions , provQd that the Charter is wrong , or that robbery Is justice . ( Hear . ) I
should like to ask the Whigs whether the ' trials are to be repeated , including the Counsel , the Judges , and plain John Campbell } I would wager that their answer would be that they would rather have nothing to do with us again . ( Hear . ) We challenged our enemies to a fair discussion of our principles—to reasou—but they shrunk away , without being able to deny the justice of our demands ; we , therefore , challenged them to fight , and they answered that challenge by arresting your leaders ; and a court of law has admitted r , he legality and the justice of the principles of the People ' s Charter . ( Hear , and applause . ) It was the first time I had ever the opportunity of addressina the aristooracy , the bar , and the middle classes .
in advocacy of the Charter ; it was the first opportunity I had of knocking sense into the wig of a Judge . ( Laughter . ) He could not say our principles were bud ; the Jury would not say onr objects were wrong ; but all , judge , jury , counsel ; and auditors , admitted that our claims were just . ( Applause . ) After this conquest , sooner than give up thoBe principlep , or yield one inch of the jusiice I claim for tho people , I would suffer the terrors of the prison , or the dungeon , a ^ aiti and again . ( Hear , and clapping of hanus . ) Really , my frieuds , the heat of the room is so overpowering that I must bring my address to a close . Although your oppressors have not succeeded in killing me , they nave given me a crack on my head , from which I
have not yet recovered . The heat , I feel , already affects my lungs . However , I hope you will thank the Whigs for sending me there ; and be sure to tell the Queen that tor the improvement of the Cbartist 6 , it is advisable to send them again to be tried j it is-an excellent school for the encouragement of tbqir principles . ( Hear . ) At preeentmignt reigns instead of right . I hope you will set to work in earnest with your new Association , and so conduct our proceedings , that they may not catch any of us again . Make yourselves safe , and your cause strong . Co-operate with the othor Associations , and you will soon overthrow your local tyrants . We must have the Charter and nothing but the Charter , and afterwards as much more as
we can get . It is only a stepping-stone to greater improvements . When we have got it we shall have a few words to say to th © Queen and the Bishops about the land which they have swallowed up , and about the protection they ought to show to the poor . The Poor Law Bastiles may then be selected as eligible sites oa which to erect pillars for Frost and his compatriots . ( Hear . ) We must tot have freedom in name but in reality ; and if our oppressors will not listen to our claims , we shall have trie power in our own hands and we must endeavour to mako them by passing such laws as will improve ; he condition of the working man , and thus establishiirg . in perfection , the rights of labour . Mr . M'Douali then retired from the room amidst tremendous applause . ' . ¦ ¦ : '
Three cheers were then given to Feargus O'Gonnortauother volley for the return of Frost , WiJliams ; and Jones , and a third for the incarcerated Chartists from Stockport . ¦¦• ,. - w . The Chairman , in dismissing the meeting ' hoped they would retire to their- homes in ^ ooi fellowship with one another , nor . bo tempted by their enemies to commit the most trivial breach of the peace , ~ - The meeting then separated with a vote , of thanks to Mr . irDpualL . . , . , , ^ , It waa announced that Mr . Leech , of Manchester ^ would deliver a lecture in that room to the Stockpott Chartists , ou the 13 ih of September , and that the patriot , John Collins , would also have eomethiugto say to them the same week . - .
PERTH . Indictment , Trial , and Condemnation of Reynard Maule . —An annual fair ia held in Dundee upon the 26 th August , the day being held as a general holiday . The Democratic Association of Dundee hired a steam-packet ( tho Hero ) for the purpose of taking a pleasure trip to the fair city of Perth ; the nnmbsr of tioketa issued were limited to four hundred , which wore all sold , and three times that number could have been disposed of had the packet afforded accommodation . At 12 o ' clock on the night of the 26 th , the Hero , crowded with " honest men and bonnie lasses , " left the quay-side ; Dundee , and shortly after three o ' clock reached tiie shore of Perth . An excellent band was on bward , whose performances merit every praise ; and it ia but
justice to remark , that the officers of the Association well deserve the thanks of their brother Chartist * for their very excellent arrangements for supplying refreshments to tbe company on board . A deputation of the Perth Radicals awaited the arrival of the Hero . The company having landed , formed in line with the council in front , with whom was Mr . George Julian Harney ( who had been specially invited by tho Dundee Chartists to accompany them , ) with music playing and banners flying , marched into the city . It was mm about four o ' clock ; day was just dawning , and it -was not a little amusing to witness the alarm of the " respectables , " who in their shirts and nightcaps flung up each window Bash , aa the people marched
through the streets , ever and arion shouting cheers for the Charter , while the band played ¦ " The Campbells ar * coming , O dear , O dear , " arrived at the Masons - Hall ; part of the procession entered the hall ( which had been prepared for their reception ) and part proceeded elsewhere to seek refreshment , until the hour of nine should summon them again to the gathering . Shortly before nine o ' clock , the Dundee and Perth Chartists began to assemble in High-street , and , as the clock struck the hour , commenced their march , proceeding In procession through the town to tbe South Inch , where the meeting was intended to be held ; the Dundee band headed the procession . Among the inscriptions and niottos on the banners we observed the following : — .
" The Perthshire Radical Reform Association . " " We demand Universal Suffrage . " " The greatest possible happiness to the greatest possible number , ia the true patriot ' s polar star . " " Let Britain no longer be a land * f slaves . " " Liberty—we'll have it Jastice- ~ we'll give it Mercy —we'll show it " " Peace , Law , Union . " ' We would rather die free than live in slavery , " Arrived at the hustings , Mr , Cree was called to the chair . Ho stated that the firat part of the business of the meeting would be to hear , in the character of jurors ,
certain grave charges to be preferred against a notorious and but too well known character , one Reynard Maule , who , it was rumoured , would attempt , at the neit election , to palm himself upon the electors of Perth- as » person fitted to represent them in Parliament ; and it would bo for them , that « ay , to decide by their verdict upon the fitness of the said Reynard Maule to act in such capacity . At the clone of this part of the proceedings , several gentlemen would address them upon the subject of Chartism . He would not detain them longer , but would now introduce to them Mr . M'Pherson , of Dundee , who would officiate as Clerk of Court in the present investigation .
Mr . M'Pherson then rose and after a few observations read the " Indictment , " of which the following is a copy :- — " Whekeas , it is meant and complained to us by the Reformers of Perthshire upon Reynard Maule , that by the laws of this , and every other realm , it lathe solemn and bonnden duty of each and every candidate to represent any Shire , City , Burgh , or University in the Parliament of the United Kingdom , to abstain , in all times , and at all places , by himself , and by his agents , from holding out any hopes , or making any promises , concerning the rights and liberties of the subject , which he does not mean to fulfil to the very letter ; and that he shall not endeavour by any undue means , or manoeuvres , or stratagems , or craftiness , or bribery , or intimidation , to procure votes , under the pretext ef being a Liberal or Reformer , knowing himself to be a decided enemy to popular rights ; and further , that after he shall have been elected to represent any Shire ,
City , Burgh , or University in the Commons' House of Parliament , he shall , to the utmost of his power , and to the best of bia judgment , give every motion and measure submitted to tke House , his foil and impartial consideration , without being biassed by any views of place , pension , profit , or emolument whatever . Yet , traeitia , and of verity , that the Baid R 9 ynard Mania made hia public appearance in the Shire of Perth , In the year 1832 , aaftrumpeter-general to a person named John Campbell , then yclept ¦ " Earl of Ormelie , " now known under the " alias" of "Marquis of Bredalbane , " and that in this capacity he traversed the length and the breadth of the said Shire of Perth , with many other evil disposed persons , who were the active and hired agents of the said John Campbell , making inflammatory and violent speeches and harangues , and circulating seditious , malicious , and scandalous publications , tending to mislead the peaceable inhabitants to routs , riots , tumult * , and disaffection ; and that he persisted in such wicked and treacherous courses , and
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practices for . several years , and , under the aiained mask of civiTand religious liberty , did head multitudes of men , Women , and children , with music an * banners , endangering the public peace , and the security of pr £ vate property . , Aad furthermore , rwfcen the Hid John Campbell was transferred from the House ot Corrup tion , ( wnewflii '; . a ^ M : ''' iH ' MiVp » i ^ 4 n ^ f the /^ t , session' of a Reformed Parliament in destroying the , liberties of Inland , by a ernel and bloody Coerci « a BUI ) , to the House of Hereditary Brigandiwn , where he flounders about state-religion , npn-intru » ioB , and tbe right of a bloated , hypocritical priesthood , to rob the people , by means of stipends , teirida , manses , glebes , and Corn Laws , the said Reynard Maule did peram bulate the said shire of Perth , aa principal aetor . or actxnart practise * fo * 7 » eveB > l yean , and , ^ nn « er the awnui
g and part with other exll-disposed penens in his pay , giving vent' and circulation to all manner of invective , bluster , ribaldry , and even obscenity ; creat ing tumult * and disorders , with the intention and design to cajole the lieges into a false belief thathe waa tbe very pink and paragon of a Reformer ! That , by such dishonourable devices be contrived to secure to himself a seat in the said House of Corruption . And furthermore , that the Baid Reynard Maule was no sooner returned as Member of the said House of Cor * ruption , than be contrived , by low intrigue and artifice , to push himself into a place aa scullion or scavenger , in a den in Downing-stxeetr then in the gift of one John Russell , ottos . Finality Jack , alias Johnny Littlego , now under the superintendence of one O'Mulgrave . .. '"
That , in conjunction with these notorious brigands ,, and one Daniel O'Crocodile , otherwise the Irish Crocodile , the said Reynard Maule did , in thaface . of former , professions of Liberalism , commence a course of tbe most violent and hateful persecution against her Majesty ' s loyal and dutiful subjects , in so far as he did aid and abet the said Littlego , O'Mulgrave , Crocodile , aud a notorious character , self-styled " Plain John , " in banishing John Frost , Esq ., and sundry other Ueges , upon false or forced evidence , au ^ in defiance of the opinions of a majority of the Judges of the land . And further , . that he confined nearly 260 of hex Majesty ' s best subjects , including Feargus O'Connor ,, Esq .. barrister-at-law , and William Lovett , and John Collins , in the dungeons of England , to be fed on spid * rs , beetles , and scalding skilly , " exceeding the treatment ef former tyrants to what is termed political offenders , by 500 per centum .
And furthermore , that the said Reynard Maule , with his said confederates , did employ a number of profligate vagabonds , under the name of Factory Inspectors , to-, perambulate the kingdom as political spies , receiving large sums of money , as pay , extorted in the shape of taxes from the produce of the people ' s labour ; and thus conspiring at the destruction of the rights and liberties of her Majesty ' s subjects , by means of the honest proceeds of their toil . That , therefore , the said Reynard Maule is brought before this public tribunal , to answer for the aforesaid crimes ; and on proof thereof being found against him , he shall be punished with Buch pains and penalties as will deter other miscreants from the commission of they like crimes in time coming .
GOD SAVE THE PEOPLE |? - The Chairman said , he had now the pleasure to introduce to them one of the ' most popular of the people ' s leaders , whose name they had long been conversant with as a zealous and energetic advocate of the Rights of Man—Mr . George Julian Harney , who would appear before them inthe character of Attorney-General or Counsel for the prosecution . ( Loud cheers . ) Mr . Harney then presented himself . He said—8 ir , and Gentlemen of the Jury—I address you ( turning to the Chairman ) as Sir , not as " ' My"Eord , " for I acknowledge no one by that title ; but the great Spirit of Uie Universe ; I address you , sir , this day , in the character of Judge appointed by the ' peopIeV'ind hot the tool of any crowned idiot , er piirple-clfla ' nfflan . You , the
people , I address as Gentlemen of the * Jury ; for it will be your province to decide , to-day , upon the truth or falsehood of the charges preferred against the individual named in the indictment Gentlemen , I must apologise for what will' be a necessarily imperfect address , upon my part , seeing that it was only some few hours back tbat I was informed of the part I would have to take in this investigation . Moteoser , the character of a lawyer is certainly' anything but pleasant to me ; for . I verily believer < $ hat nature never meant me to be either priest ! Or : Hwryerl Mavlngv shown that the defendant was one of a das * ot public . impostors styled Liberals , Mr . H . proceeded to ' descant , at great length , upon the doing * of theie ^ mmsa * ' inl 831-2 , contrasting their ihenyrofttelo&mMt ^ tintbxqupti conduct , demonstrating- that - ^ laBerfflflBtf ^ is tytanny , tha rmoflt . tepoMve . -. dmt san ^ fcTfcoerfcy" c&nfchteL
Mt JU . the * reviewed tb « conduit oftite deftn « utt ; m the . qase . of the prosecution 6 f- ; Jdnhi Fr 0 tfti - 'B 8 ^ . ; and unveiled the lying MonndreUsm of-Ws wndttcfr With reference to Feargua O'Connor , E «^ . "'^ BWthetfexh 1 olted to the meeting the bistfcnesVef > ViRany v or the defendant , in the rapport which he ( &e defeiWant ) hadu constantly given to the unconstitutforiai' and odious rural police system , and the shameless ' manner in which he , < tfa <* defendant ) had defentfeo / Uw ^ einployhteht of Factory ^ Inspectors aa political « pies * ' MTf ft . teii a number of documents , showing the'horrible treatment of Fergus O'Connor , BJid-oth ^ perWoris imprisoned in England for fulfilling their duties W'their country ; also speeches of the honourable defendant in proof of the charges alleged against him . After to earnest , appeal to the meeting to do their duty as Britons , and return an honest verdict according to their judgment , he sat down amidst repeated cheering .
Mr . George Adams ; of Dundee , appeared cs counsel for the defendant / In defence of his client he urged that if the charges of cunning and roguery preferred against his client by his Learned Friend were really proven , still the Jury would remember that it was the nature of a Fox to be ; cunning and roguish . He further urged that his client could not be fairly said to havo betrayed the people , us he had only betrayed the working classes , - who were not ' recognised as the people , under the existing ordfef ^ of things . Mr . Adams concluded a very humorous address , amidst mingled laughter and cheers . ' The Chairman then briefly summed up the evidence , and on the question being put to tbe Jury , the assembled thousands unanimously returned a verdict that the defendant bad been proven Guilty of all tbe charges in tho indictment .
The Chairman said it now remained for him to perform hisduty in passing sentence upon the defendant , which he did in the following terms : — " Whereas Reynard Maule has been by a jury of his countrymen declared to be proven guilty of certain high crimes and misdeameanoura set forth in the indictment preferred aganst him . The sentence of this court is , that he be held as unworthy of the confideace . of all true Reformers—that' he is denounced as an enemy to his country , and given over to the execration of all good men . " The terms of this sentence was heartily responded to by tho meeting . Mr . George Adams then again briefly addressed the meeting , showing the necessity of sobriety if they would obtain , and having obtained if they would know how to make use of their rights .
Mr . Sime , of Dundee , followed , pointing out the indispensable necessity of Union if they would win their Charter . He sat down amidst loud applause . Mr . Harney addressed the meeting a second time , making an impassioned appeal to his hearers to prove theniselves men , and show they were worthy of their native land , by emulating the deeds of their sires . Thanks having been voted to the Chairman , three eheen were given for Feargus O'Connor , three for Collins , Lovett , and M'Douall , and three for Julian Harney , when the meeting broke up . At three o ' clock , the Dundee Democrats shipped on board the Hero , and took their departure f <* Dundee .
Mr . Harney addressed a second meeting of the Perth ' Radicals , in the evening , held in the Masons' HalL He delivered a very lengthy and powerful address . of which we are sorry we cannot furnish even an uutliae . Enough that his audience werehixbly gratified , which they well testified by their approbation . For a long time past , the "fair city" has sadly Men tttck in tbe good cause , bnt it is now to be hoped that , after this timely help of the good men of Dundee , the Chartists of Perth will respond to the appeal that has been made to them , and once more show " That they know their rights , and , knowing , dar » maintain !"
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Nevek too Old to Le < rn . —A few days ago , *• person about eighty-two years of ago , called on a man , by trade a sieve maker , not many miles from Yetminster , to offer himself as an apprentreal proposing three ^ overei gus as a premium , to be instructed till such time as he could make a taty basket . Thebk is a modified type of the cholera disease continuing at this season of the vear very prevalent in some of the country districts , and some slight canes of the same disease have manifested themselves within the last few weekB in parts of the metropolis . Th « French call the disease ehoieriae . —EvtnaHr Paper .
Accident on the Eastebn Counties' Railwat . — On Monday , the Jury assembled aud signed their verdict . Cue of the Jurors asked how mar fat ** accidents , had occurred on this railroad , and was told , ehher twelve or thirteen , and all on th M ** four miles , of the road . It was stated that the ^ loM of the manor intends to claim the deodand , Dy virtue of aa dd charter , and that he will divide u among the widows of the sufferers . The C ^ P" ^ will refuse to pay the deodand , and remove the e *» to a superior Court .
News pbom Cam .-The Hindoo . Manson , vrived at Liverpool from Calcutta , spoke , on-m « £ of July , the Aden , from China . The Afa # 5 Macao on the 27 th of April , eighteen daya subsequent to the date of the advices brought by the > last ove £ land mail . No event of importance had o * F ° n ** in . the interval . The Chinese continued bnsuy « gaged in making preparations for w 09 ™ *^ English expedition ; Occasionally they agg themselves by throwing rockets amongst ™ . ™ " #£ f ships at Macao , without , however , cau sing w Berious damage . As much tea had been MP * Macao as would load all the ships wntin * » r c * w at that rendezvous . '
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6 THE KORtrgERN STAfe ; _____^^_^^^_^^_^_ d in the of of 1
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Sept. 5, 1840, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/king-y1kbzq92ze2700/page/6/
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