On this page
- Departments (3)
-
Text (13)
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
THE NORTHERN STAR. SATURDAY, JUNE 17, 1843.
-
2To ffieavevff antf (8Qvvt&povtoent0>
-
Untitled Article
-
One Law fob the Rich and another fob the Poor.—A case occurred at Marlborough-street
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.
-
-
Transcript
-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Untitled Article
CORONER'S INQUEST . ( From the ^ l <> mhi S ChrBiAdc ) 2 ) £ AlH CF A Csa £ U ^ i RlOTEK I > " IHK PSXISST 3 ABT . —O& Saturd > - « a lengthened investigation ioofc place in the General Penitentiary , -Millbank , "Wfclminsterjb efore 31 r . Eiggs . deputy coroner for ] "Wetmi 3 sfei and a respectable jury , tra the body « f John A ^ iley , aged 34 , late a tradesman ai Siifferd , and leader of a Chartist association , -who was con-
* Icted In October last , at the SraSard specal ses-• Sods . in ban ? concerned vmh others m i ^ e &tal-Sordsbire Chutist Tiots , and sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment in the Pemlentrary- The case excited mneh interest . After tbc jary -were sworn they viewed She body of tic deceased , -which was " laid in tie dead house -of the pnson ; it presented so emaciated an aj 5 > earance as to excite the sympathy of all present . On the return of the jury to the inquest room , the following evidence was adduced- ....
The ReT . Daniel * £ ih 3 , £ Otbtbot and chaplain of ibe prison , deposed tea ? the deceased was received entBe 7 ihof December , having bten tried and convicted the previous 1 st of "October , ax . the Stafford special sessions , for riot and being concerned in Bnla-rcfnl meetings , for -which he -was sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment in the penitentiary . By the Foreman of the -5 ury—The deceased was in good he = lth-when he-was received into the prison , bnt his mindappeared deeply sfFeeted at his situation . He vras a massr tailor at Si&fford , and has left a ¦ widow aiid family . . By-the Coroner—The deceased first became ill ib February last , when he was received inte the infirmary , aad attended by Dr . Bailey , physician to the prison . His sentence did not include labour .
By a-Jnror—Since his imprisonment he has occasionally been viated by his friends , afttr which he ¦ wasgenerally more depressed in mind . "While in health he was ddi allowed more than the prison diet , but during the period he was in the infirmary he had every descriptiDn of nourishing articles ; in fact , whatever the medical attendant considered essential tohisTecovery . By the Coroner—The deceased was ailo wedto walk in the yard occasionally . Ho undue severity was ever exercised -towards him . I afibrded him all the indulgence in my power , having an « ye to the Government -orders respecting snch description of prisoners , -fie never made any complaint to me .
By ihe Foreman—The deceased was allowed hooks , anu pens , ink , and paper , and was accustomed to i-ead very much . He was not allowed to mix "wRh the oihtr prisoners , bnt often conversed with the officers of the prison , when he advocated his principles and complained of the unjust sentence he had received 5 at the same time alluded to the Government persecution of Feargus O'Connor and other T » vi ) ' - to their cause . By a jnrar—Tiae silent syssem is done away with in the prison . The health of the prisoners is better than formerly , owing to the short sentences . There have been only seven deaih 3 during the last twelvemonths .
Dr . Bailey , physician to the prison , said—The deceased was admitted to the infirmary in February last , suffering from scrofulons affection , rheumatism , jaundice , and general debility . He had every care and nourishment afforded him , but " he gradually sunk , and died on Wednesday . His body -was opened , when the viscera , heart , lnngs , and mesemeric fluids were found effected with scrofula . By ihe Foreman—Scrofula is a prison complaint , but the deceased was constitutionally scrolulous . Imprisonment trill aggravate the disorder . There being no further evidence , the jury iBtarned a verdict of * Died by the visitation of God . " _ ~ -
Untitled Article
* rWR 321 AX OF TPI 1 TJAM KE 2 «« E 3 > Y , BEFORE MB . SOUCITOB eEXERAL , AT ATBT , OX TB 3 DKI , THE 24 TH DAT OF AUGUST , 1797 William Kennedy stood indicted for aiding and assisting a numerous armed niobj on Saturday night the 6 th of May last , in an attack on the ¦ Charter-scEoolhouse of Carberry , inhabited by Stephen Sparks , master < thereof , 'Kith an intention to take away the life of the laid roaster , and to 70 b the said house of arms , the pro- perty of the said Stephen Sparks , and of arms the pro- petty of several yeomen of the Grand Canal Legion , there deposited for safety ; and also for firing several i shots into the said house , with an intention to Mil the . said Stephen Sparks , contrary to the Statute , &c . On "this indictment lie vras arraigned , and pleaded Kot ^ olbr . i
Stephen Sparks , sworn . —Said he was master ef the Charter-sebool-hense of Carberry , that he had a -good right to remember the 6 th of May ; his reason for remembering II so -well -sraa , that on tkat sight , or the j na 4 morning , his honse-was attacked by a great number ' of men , he believed near three hundred , mo&tof them ¦ Trere armed with -guns ; they -attacked the house in j front ; they threw a great number of stones and fired ; against the -windows ; the . guns were loaded with ball ; the shot entered into several -windows of the room , ! lodged JnJhe windaw-frames and shutters , and many j xanged along the trails in different directiens . Witness i sever staid long in any one situation , he ran from one I sever staid long in any one situation , be ran from one
• windo-sf to another ; he wssJEzposed to the shot of the ; persons "who feed Tery frequently * several balls passed doss to Mm , he thanked God neither he « r Ms ( family or party received any wound . He had six per- j -aona in th » house beside his son ; they fired repeatedly ; on ths persons -trio xnade the attack ; whenever tie , party "without fired a volley they save a shout , or ratker a yell ; they desired * vri& » ss to throw out Mb arms , i "Witness and his party iept firing on them ; he did not ! give them his arms . They went off ; he heard & great j shoot ; they said they would be back again and send-¦ witness and his family to hell ; he saw a party on the j TnTl coming towards the house , witness thought they < had rallied ; he and his party fired on them ; wben-he j heard the -srords " WitWow—friends , Ji they stopped ; their fireone of the Wicslow vras unfortunately ;
; Jdlled bya shot from the house before they were known ;! lie said fee prisoner at the bar was soon after Drought j to his house in company with another man ; they "were , ¦ broughtm by a party of thaWicfclo-w ; witness laiew j the prisoners 5 he asked the prisoner Kennedy , for God's ; -Bate , irhat could indues him to attack witness ; he j Tronld not make any answer ; would sot speak one : -word ; -witness solemnly declared Kennedy was as sober as he ithe -witness ) was si the time of giving his evidence . There was a considerable deal of injury done the house ; it cost Tip-wards ef -Bftwn pounds to repair the -windows ; several balls were fired ante the room where witness ' s family trere ; he - ""» fl « no doubt but he -was frequently . in great danger ; he heard several tails pass quite close ; to him ; he stood mostly in front , to have anoppor-j tnnity of firing -with effect . He is convinced thBre could , sot be less than three hundred men at the a * . tact
lieutenant HeppsnstaU said he was a Lieutenant in ' Edenderry in May last ; remembered the night of the j € th of 3 Isy . The soldiers at the camp -were alarmed by the fireguent reports cf musguetxy ; aSont twelve at night , thedrnm-beat to arms ; the party wss formed into three divisions ; ¦ srifcness eommanded one -party ; they took different roads ; -witness marched his party towards Wllliamsto-wn ; hs had got a hint that Mr . ¦ Williams' and Csptain 6 rattsn " 8 houses -would ' attacked that Bight ; -witness had sot matched far , ¦ when he "heard vollies towards Csrberry iill ; 'be crossed ovei tovuds it ; he sdll beard the firing and * Hrmring ; Trhen he came to the top of the hill lie saw a house under Tiim ; be s ^ ksA -whose it -was -,
some ef the men said it-was Sparkes ' s ; they isd not reiurned far , -when several shots were discharged from the house si his party , one of Ms men teas shot ; and himself near "bring killed , the ball passed through his side lock , fee threw himself on the ground , and cried out murder—Wieklov—friends—several balls passed tbrengh Ins clothes , he saw a man rnnning from the lionse , witness ran up to him and knocked him down . He asked lam who he was , tut he would not make any answer ; witness sveore he would put him to death if he did sot tell who he was ; but he would sot speak ; It was the prisoner at the bar ; he gave him In charge to his senesEt , and went forward with some of the
men ; lie soon after saw another man razmxBg . sIaag . ihe lull ; witness came sp with him and knocked him down -wife the butt « nd of bis firelock . The man asked for mercy , and that if his life was spared , he wonld discover the persons who "were there ; witness seized "him hy the collar , brought Wm -up to where he hsd left the other prisoner ; asked him if he knew that man , pointing to the jpnsoner at the bar . Hyland , the ether prisoner , said yes , that is Bill Kennedy , the brogue-maker , of BSfihawauna , he wm with us . Hyland said that Kennedy had sworn 2 dm , before they went to Spark ' s in the old * inreb jard of Garbeny ; witness teoagbt asm down to 2 to . Sparks .
Onbis < sos *^ pHiinaUon , he said he did nat see a gun with lie prisoner at the bar . He said he pnt a lops TOund the prisoner ' s neck , aod swore he -wonld liang him if he did not discover his party , and acknowledgeahedigrw the eord pretty fight ; bnt he could not get award &om him . Hyland discovered of several others , who were taken that morning . Akaander Caf&y said hrwas apmate in the Wicklow MlliUa ; went out under the command © f lieutejant HfippenBtall , the night the faarter-house was attacked j flay -eame vp yak as it was over . The ¦ defenders made off when the Wieklow-came np ; they fired Mine shots—one of fiis comrade * was killed Wiliie » aaw Qje prisoner xnnnlag from the house irom -tfca wall up the bin . Hewastafaa iytlie party . He had a gun in iis hand . 32 jc Xoeoteoant iaacked him down ; he would not tell who he was .
Ob hii crpssHBzanunatioSj jaid he is sure Kennedy li < tri » gas as he came up . Witness ma wiihin a yard of the IAeutenant ; he kepi near him , and could see the prisoner as well as he . He is posi tive Kennedy had a gun , and witness saw i > "n ^ rop it Serjeant-pound 1 en said he saw lie prisoEtr ruiming feom \ T »« hbfiffi . He did not see a gun with him ; bat saw ODe about thirty yards from where fce was running , tfitnefis was dose to Mr . Heppecstall ; Jjieutenent gave the prisons- into witness * cara . The prisoner Jay down batwonld uot apeak a word . The party soon after brought Dp another prisoner { Hyland u . He said the first Man was Kennedy , the brogufc-maitr . The prisoners were brought down to Mi . Sharks , i . wi aftex-¦» ai « 8 to the tamp at BdeBfifenr .
Untitled Article
REPEAL OF THE UNIONAfteb the ineffectual attempt of Henry Gkattan and a few other Irish members to resist that unhappy connexion with England , which has since proved snch an endless source of expence to both countries , Gbattas exclaimed : " Well . ; thanks be to God ^ Ireland will now be avenged for all the wrongs , the insults , and injustice that England has heaped upon her ; for she will send one hundred of the most reprobate rascals that rabid Faction can produce to mix with her legislators and poison her : counsels !" Whatever Grattas ' s feelings were , when rejoicing in anticipation of this negative triumph , we imagine
he had bet little notion that , in reality , the very fact of inoculating tha British Legislature with the spirit of Irish faction would lead to the restoration of an Irish Parliament . In the present article then , we shall establish the fact , that the question of Repeal is , in reality , more an English than an Irish question . We do nat , like the Times , handle this question according to the varied shapes in which Irish agitation presents itself . We do sot rely so much upon the " if this be so , that ought to be so ; and , if it is not so we can ' t tell why it is not so . " The deductions , the collateral issues , the similies , the tropes , the figures , the metaphors , ihe prophecies
and the fine-spua reasonings of the Times , are above our humble comprehension aad far below our contempt . Accustomed as we are to see an amusing variety in the political Kaleidoscope , we were scarcely prepared for so many new patterns of public opinion , even in these days of invention . } as that Journal has presented . Floundering about between Administration and Opposition , the S . ock Exchange and Commercial Interest , Doctor Pvssr
and the Pope , the Orange Faction and the Catholic Hierarchy , the English Chancellor and Irish Magistrates , it has done much mischief without one single good " guess" in its recent articles upon the Repeal of the Union and ihe Stats of Ireland . Let us now see whether or not the question of the Union is one of interest to the English people . We do not use the term people here with . any limitation . In our present consideration , the term people applies to the whole of English society , and not merely to the working cl&sses .
On the 1 st of January , 1801 , 100 Irish Members hecame part and parcel of the Legislature of the United Kingdom : and if we take up the Parliamentary history of the country from that period , especially to 1815 , when peace was proclaimed , we shall find that Mr . Pm in his day , and Lord Litebpmx in his day , relied upon the corrupt support of the Irish Members as their majorities to increase the Debt , to violate the Constitution , and to overawe public opinion .
I * o twen-y years of the history of England present such a caAalogae of Ministerial profligacy , corruption , and tyranny as these twenty years , from 1801 to 1820 , both iaclnsive . And the reader will find , with very few honourable exceptions , that the 100 Irish Members invariably constitnted the mischievous majorities of the English Minister . An open contract existed between the Irish Orange Faction and the English Minister ; the conditions of which were : — " Take ye bank notes ; Give me youx vote 3 :
and any benefit which might have been likely to result from a cordial union was destroyed by the means in which the Irish party were compelled to resort for the purpose of strengthening their Parliamentary interest at home . Places were created without number ; pensions were bestowed without service ; titles were conferred without merit ; every channel for jobbing that human ingenuity could devise was opened ; road jobbing , land jobbing , church jobbing , Jaw jobbing , army jobbing , navy jobbing , customs jobbing , revenue iobbing , excise jobbing , and police jobbing were so many
profitabVe speculations handed over to ! the privileged few . Poring that period the claim of the Catholics to Emancipation was the absorbing Irish question . The Catholics most interested in its accomplishment were ineligible to sit in Parliament ; . and the Protestant candidates , with never a half-doz 9 n exceptions , could best recommend themselves to the favour of the drivers of Catholic forty shilling freeholders by a pledge to support a Tory Minister and our glorious -Constitution in Church and State . Some three or four large landed proprietors in each connty were consulted as to the most profitable disposition to be made of the mountain ers upon their estates . The Catholic voters were driven is flocks by the Squire ' s bailiff to vote for a
Protestant candidate , pledged to perpetuate their degradation . In return tor this service , the whole traffic of the country was handed over to those landlords by whwse coalition the Protestant interest was apheld . The representative jthus poked into Parliament was -the tool of the coalition . He fumed , and bristled , and threatened the Minister with the opposition « f self and brothers if any attempt was made to interfere with ihe acknowledged prerogatives of the Granga party . Irish indnstry , thus paralieed , was , very shortly after the Union , unequal to the task of supporting those domestic cormorants ; aad the English Minister was compelled in ISIS to violate the most important article of the Act of Uaion by eo . usolidating the Exchequer of the t-wo countries ; dcmesSo plunder
Untitled Article
being fo , and inadequate to pay the Irish party for their conrupt support . It will be seen by the articles ° f Union , ( to be fonnd in our eighth page , ) hat by the seventh article , the respective debt of the two countries was apportioned &b follows : —England , fbxiher share , to pay 15-17 ths , and Ireland , for her share , to pay 2-I 7 ths . It will also be seen that this contract wa ° to hold good for twenty years ; and that any subsequent contract for the following twenty years was to be regulated by a just re-appointment , reference being had
to the rule established by the Act of Union . By the 58 of George III ., this most important of the several articles of Union was violated by the consolidation of the English and Irish Exchequers . This flagrant act of injustice was forced upon the English Minister immediately after the peace , when the disruption of the army and its several lucrative concomitants so increased the hoard of idle paupers , that the single field of Irish peculation became too narrow for their use . The document to which we refer is of great importance ,
and will be lead with deep interest by all who would confine their advocacy of Repeal within legal limits . Wo would a ^ k , wherein differs a contract supposed to be made between a king and % people and a contract made between two individuals }? and if not only Bonperformance of the stipulated conditions , bat total violation of the whole contract , would be grounds sufficiently strong for declaring it null and void in the latter case by what Tule of right can the very discussion of the violation of every one of itB provisions in the former case he held to be
seditious , illegal and unconstitutional i Let as see what really are the leading conditions of this contract which in the "habendum" as we may call it , is stated to last for ever . The first article by which the number of Irisn members is apportioned , was violated , we acknowledge , with the consent of the United Parliament , by giving to Ireland five additional members . In the six subsequent articles we have the terms upon which the Irish contractors sold their country , every one of which has been violated : except , indeed , we are to consider that the
condition to expend the stipulated amount in Irish improvements was fulfilled by its application to factious purposes . We hare before analyzed the condition of the seventh article which was to hold good for twenty-years , and which the united Parliament had no power to alter . If it had not been for the support of the Irish Members , the English Minister would have found it impossible to increase the National Debt to its present amount . Had it not been for the subserviency of that party , the
English Minister would not have been able to make the successful inroads upon theoliberties aad privileges of Englishmen , ; which , with their co-operation , he has made without difficulty ; while had the amount of monies contracted for , by ( the act of the Union been faithfully expended upon Irish improvements , England would : not now be overrun with an Irish corps de reserve of labourers for the masters to fall back upon , as a means of reduoing the wages of Englishmen .
If we take a still more comprehensive view of the whole subject , we find the time of tht United Parliament , night after night , occupied in angry Irish discussion ]; and whether Whigs or Tories are in office , they but become the administrators of patronage to their respective parties . The great value then to be attached to the present agitation is the fact that it takes the question out of the old see-saw . It is no longer a question as to which party can best govern Ireland , but as to how the two countries living in a state : of union and amity can best govern themselves .
The purification of the English Parliament is sorely matter of deep importance to the English people of all classes : and this can only be accomplished by extracting from it the Irish poison upon which GrattUt relied for its contamination . And Ireland can have no chance of dealing with her domestic grievances—the principal of which is an expensive and unprofitable law-church , —so long as her representatives are chosen by persons upon whom the Protestant landlord must confer the franchise .
In the words of Mr . O'Connor we say : If you have grievances to complain of , and if the most prominent are the burdenB imposed upon you by an adverse Church and the restrictions imposed upon yon by landlords lest your Emancipation should damage that Church to whose patronage they look for support , —how can you suppose that those landlords , as patrons of Church property , will carve their Protestant lands into electoral qualifications to be used against their interest ?"
So long as the Protestant land must constitute the electivefranchise , so long will Catholic Emancipation be a mere empty sound ; so long will all the burdens of the Law Church be allowed to continue ; so long will the restrictions of landlords remain in force ; and so long will those angry feelings which disgrace both countries be kept alive between Catholic and Protestant . The remedy therefore , the only one which can be effectual for the correction of these grievances , is a transfer , from the soil to man , of that right which is inherent in him , and of which
he has been uDjustly deprived by brute force . Enfranchise the Catholio man instead of the Protestant or Catholic land ; and then , when in full possession of his constitutional rights , should be invade , interfere with , or attempt to abridge , thoso of his Protestant neighbour , we shall be amongst the first to demand from a freely chosen Parliament snch measures as the weak shall require for their protection against the Btrong . So long aa the Protestant Jand is the shield of the Protestant
Church , so long will the proprietor prefer leasing it to a PreBbyterian or Protestant or Dissenting tenant , ( upon whose vote he can rely ) for twenty shillings an acre , to leasing it to a Catholic , ( whose vote he dreads ) for twenty-five shillings an acre . Whereas it the Catholic had the vote in virtue of his person , the Protestant landlord would accept him as a tenant at : twenty shillings and sixpence an acre , rather than give it to a Protestant or Dissenter for twenty shillings and threepence as
acre . We think it ,, therefore , the duty of the English Chartists to struggle zealously , peaceably , constitutionally , and incessantly for a Repeal of that Union by which their Legislature has been poisoned ; while it is equally the duty of Irishmen to struggle by the same means for the acquisition of those rights by which alone they can hope to have such a Legislature as English gold cannot again corrupt ; and by which alone the Repeal becomes valoable or important to them . We have much yet to say , and especially to the Irish people , npon this great subject .
Untitled Article
THE RIGHT OF MR . O'CONNOR TO WALK THE STREETS . THE DUTY OF GOVERNMENT TO SEND HIM TO THE
HULKS . We give the following article , whole and entire , withont the abridgement or alteration of a single word , from the Times of yesterday week : — " There are some things which nay be either a blessing or a corse , and among them we may reckon the refinements of law . Where it is Beces-B » j that the liberty of the sabject—the free enjoyaaent by every one of the social immunities to which he is fairly entitled , whether they be of parse or person , of fame or fortune—is to be secured fr « m the tyranny which conld otherwise be exerted by might against right ; where poverty in rags is to be saved from the merciless oppression of wealth
invested with power * where a virtuous minority is to be sheltered from the rage of a remorseless majority ; or where the majority itself , exposed to hazard from being in a more or less defenceless condition , requires a shield against the attacks of a well-armed and cruel rnmority— -in any of these cases we rejoice at the Eubtilty of the administrators of the law being able successfully to defend the oppressed against the oppressor . But xven in such cases our applause is not unqualified by the consciousness that there is something which ought to be censured ; we cannot bring ourselves to acquiesce with the whole heart in an acquittal being obtained by a mere quibble , however corojaily we may hail the tact
Untitled Article
of there having been an acquittal . When , however , a convicted criminal , who , either for the most selfish jends , or acting from ; mere recklessness , has instigated hundreds of his deluded fellow-subjects to set the laws of their country at defiance , has successfully urged them , by plausible sophistries , to peril the property and lives of themselves and of all within ; reach of their violence , has succeeded in placing ; extensive districts under a syatem of terrorism , and in subjecting them , without compunction , to the calamities of civil war , and after his poor tools have been imprisoned and transported by scores for mer ely having obeyed his bidding , escapes
himself with absolute impunity , on the sole ground that the astuteness of some lawyer discovered a clerical error in the indictment , it is impossible to repress our indignation at the scandalous prostration of justice before the Belial of verbal nicety . WHAT RIGHT has Feabgus O'Connor to BE NOW WAtKIAG THE STREETS OF MANCHESTER as an iiNNOCKNT man I Is there a single individual in Great Britain who has the remotest doubt , ; tbat , so far as justice was concerned , O'Connor was guilty of the crimes for which he was tried ? Is there one , either on the bench or off it , who entertains the shadow of a
suspicion that O'CONNOR OUGHT , as between himself and the community , TO BE NOW EXPI ATENG HIS OFFENCES against his victims of every grade—whether his duped colleagues in crime or the innocent sufferers from his criminality -IN A DUNGEON OB . THE HULKS' He has been ' let off' because in . one count of the indictment—in one of what are deaomtuanted in Westminster Hall ' the Gregorian counts , ' for what reason we cannot pretend tossy—it happened that ' the venue' was omitted ! No matter what was the notoriety of his crime—no matter that every Judge on the bench was aa fully aware as the convict himself of what the indictment meant ,
and ha ' d no more doubt of its meaning and of the accuracy with which it conveyed to the prisoner the fullest possible information that was necessary to enable him to make his defence—there was a clerical error ; and the judicial conscience could only be set at rest by giving the prisoner the benefit of it . Law this may bo ; justice it is not . How much longer is this to be permitted ? Are acts of Parliament made to bind the good only : are they framed for the express purpose of entangling the poor in their meshes , and ot allowing the rich , as Mr . O'Connell boasts , * to drive a coach and six " through them ! ' We plainly tell our Legislators that the time is come when the conviction of a
criminal must not depend on the chances ot an indictment against him being so framed that the keenest legal acumen shall not find a single phrase in it capable of beiag distorted into conveying a meaning which no ordinary matt could detect . We must have the practice of the criminal law reduced to some accordance with common sense , and the people re-assured by finding that the laws which they are required to obey are not incompetent to defend them against the grossest outrages . What example can be of worse effect at the present time , when " the ' ordinary power of the Constitution' are referred to as being relied on by the Government to suppress
rebellion m Ireland , than an acquittal like r eargns O'Connor ' s proclaiming the utter inefficiency of those * ordinary powers V Sir R * Peel is bound individually , ; if his law reforms were not intended as mere olap-traps , or were not introduced by him merely ' that he might reap ' the laurels which had been planted by Sir S . Romily and others , to obviate by sufficient enactments the glaring injustice , of which ' we have of late had such repeated reason to complain , of the spirit of the law being entirely set at nought in deference to its mere letter . He is bound , as the head of the Government , to justify the extravagant cost of the late 6 pecial commission by securing the punishment of the leading offender , and thereby to clear the Government and its officials
from the suspicion under wbioh they cannot but rest , ot conniving at the errors of their subordinates . If it was a proper exercise of the discretion of the Government that O'Connor should be prosecuted to conviction last autumn—and of its propriety no suspicion has ever yet been hinted—it is equally { as proper now that a fresh indictment should be preferred against him without a single week ' s delay , and that , while the facts are in the recollection of the witnesses who were produced on his trial , their evidence should be again made use of . It is of more urgent importance that the supremacy of the law should be vindicated , and that those who are disposed to disobey it should be taught that the chances of a criminal prosecution are not on a par with those of a lottery or a dice-box .
" There are plenty of gentlemen in Parliament who would not suffer a poacher to escape scot-free under similar circumstances , and we rely on some one proving in his place there that his whole sympathy is not confined to his preserves . There are plenty who would give up even the Derby-day to vote for or against free trade . Let us see that there are { some among them who vrill require the Government to prosecute O'Connor to a successful conviction . " We are at a loss which to admire most , the malignity , the impudence , or the ignorance , of this tirade . Fortunately all these qualities are so conspicuous that it must excite in every man ' s mind who reads it and who knows the facts , a thorough contempt and loathing for the scribbler who could write it .
" What right has Feargus O'Connor to be walking the streets of Manchester I" forsooth ! The right of his obedience to the law , you fool ! a right which you violate in the penning of this flagitious article , and for which , if O'Connor does not trounce your proprietors , he deserves to be bugbitten to death . The Times asks : — "Is there a single individual in Great Britain who has the remotest doubt , that bo far as justice was concerned , O'Connor was guilty of the crimes for which he was tried i "
Yes ; there are at least fourteen individuals in Great Britain who have no doubt at all upon the 6 ubject ; who know that O'Connor was not " guilty of the crimes for which ho was tried "; and these are the twelve Jurymen who tried him , the Judge before whom he was tried , and the Attorney-General who prosecuted him . All these parties know , and have recorded their conviction that O'Connor is not " guilty of the crimes for which he was tried . " He was tried for conspiracy , for riot ' for illegal meetings , and tumultuous assemblies ; for the forcible prevention of labour ; and for a host of other " crimes" committed by the patrons , of the Times . All these were
industriously set forth in the indictment ; but the Judge said that these allegations of " crime" had no business there—that they could not be Buetained—the Attorney-General acknowledged that the Judge was right , and he abandoned many of the "crimes" sought to be charged , at once . But though , even then , the indictment still charged many things upon the defendants which the law does consider " crimes , " the Jury refused to credit the indictment , there being no evidence to support its allegations , and they , by their verdict , affirmed that they held O'Connor and others to be guilty only of that which they had just been told by the Judge Was * A MOOT POINT IN THE VERY HIGHEST
QUARTERS , AS TO WHETHER IT WAS ANY OFFENCE IN LAW or not . " These were the very words of the Judge , when charging the jury , in reference to the allegation contained in the fifth oount of the indictment , the only count upon which O'Connor was convicted . And yet this malignant libeller , knowing this , impudently writes about : — " A convicted criminal , who , either for the most selfish ends , or acting from more recklessness , has instigated hundreds of his deluded tellow-subjects to set the laws of their country at defiance , has
successfully urged them , by plausible sophistries , to peril the property and lives of themselves , and of all within reach of their violence , and succeeded in placing extensive districts under a system of terrorism ,: and in subjecting them , without compunction , to tha calamities of civil war , and after bis poor tools have been imprisoned and transported by scores ifo * merely having obeyed his bidding , escapes himself with absolute impunity on the sole ground that the astuteness of some lawyer discovered a clerical error in the indictment . "
And affirms that " O Connor ought to be now expiating : his offences in a dungeon or the hulks" ! ! The animus of all this is so apparent ; the impotence of disappoiuted malioe is so obvious , that if wehadino other proof of thatwhioh we told the people at its very beginning—that the strike was an infernal faction plot—we should point triumphantly to this ! article as our best confirmation . Of course the Leviathan liar and slanderer is followed at a respectful distance by all the small fish of the same fry . The Nonconformist , the Bradford Observer , the Leeds Mercury Goody Goose and each other petty hireling of faction has * its own •* wee" note in the wake of " the thundererV roar .
They w . ll not succeed ia inducing the Atvorney-Geuek . vl to prefer anew indictment against Air . U'Co . vxok ; tor this simple reason : the Attorney-Gkneiul knuws as well as the Times knows that he has no ground of le ^ al accusation against Air . O'Con-
Untitled Article
nor—that he has nothing whereon to make an indictment stand . He has done his best already , and the Judges have shown him thai his " best" is " no go .. " j
Untitled Article
police office on Monday , which furnishes another beautiful illustration' of the fact , which we have often had occasion t * p insist on—namely , that there is one law for the rich , and another for the poor . The particulars of this case are briefly as follows : — A young scion of nobility , who , it , seems , was powerfully refreshed with something considerably stronger than tea , was driving in a cab dawn Shepherd-street , about four o ' clock oa Monday morning , when suddenly he caught sight of a cock , and jumping down from his vehicle , oommenoed a vigorous pursuit of the bird , and after ajten minutes chase succeeded in bagging it , and was just in the act of driving off with it , when a policemaoj who happened to be passing at the time—a miraculous interposition , for it is a well known fact that policemen are never to be found
when theyvare wanted— " knowing the fowl to be the property of a house-keeper in the street , pursued and stopped the cab , ! and took the aristocratic delinquent into custody . " j On being brought before the sitting magistrate , that considerate functionary after hearing the statement of the case , blandly suggested that possibly the cock might have been abducted by way of a lark . The quick-witted policeman instantly caught at this merciful suggestion , and adroitly replied that he thought his Worship was right , and that the affair was a mere joke—nothing more ; whereupon the prisoner was dismissed with a fine of five shillings for having been found drank 2 The inference we draw from this magisterial decision is ; that provided a man be rich and nobly descended , he may bag as manyjcocks as he pleased , the circumstantesofhis wealth , and nobility biin /* convincing proofs that he bags them with no ieionious intent , j hut simply by way of a " lark . "
Untitled Article
crocious Outrage . — We have received from a number of parties , who give their names , the following particulars of a diabolically atrocious outrage on a poor woman : — K certain poor woman , resides with her aon and daughter , in a cottage by the road side , in th « chapelry of Astley , parish of St . Mary , county of Salop , and to which « a » d cottage is attached a small croft , or crofts , of ground , with garden , &c . The land is of ancient tenure , being in shareB or doles , the present occupiers being proprietors of three doles , the Lady &f the Manor one dole , several others one dote each , for which is paid 2 s . 6 d . each dole , as chief rent , which is all they can demand .
But to the subject : — V rich neigLbour , a " gentleman , " is proprietor of one dole . The said woman has perceived for some time past his desire to obtain poSsession of her bit of land , by his claiming some trees growing in tha hedge adjoining the turnpike road . She put up a board ia one of the said trees warning all trespassers ; bnt , Abab like , he cooU not be happy without this bit of land , notwitn « standing ali his possessions ; therefore , on May 13 tb , he brought five men with him to fell thes * Baid trees . The woman ' s son * a youth , perceiving their intention , declared they should not cut tM trees down . The gentleman challenged Um to fight , at the same time putting himself in fighting
attitude , and struck the young man ; but perceivin g he could not get him to fight , he ordered some ol the men to hold him , whilst the othew cuttne trees . As soon as the mother knew she ran to rescue her hod , whom they were ill nsin g shamefolly . They seized the woman , and pitched ber clean over the hedge , Into a ditch , en the road side . She got through the hedt ; e again : one of them again sent her into ihe hedge by a violent blow . At the same time her daughter received a violent blow in tbe mouth , and another in the face , giving her a black eye . But notwithstanding all this abuse , they titood to protect the trees , when the " gentleman" shouted , " Cat their d d Ie « s , and 1 will stand the blunt , " or brunt One of the men cut the woman ' s leg with the axe a most dreadful wound , three inches in length . We sa w tbe clothes cut to the length of four or five inches , an <> covered
with blood . They threw her into the road again , when , being exhausted through loss of blood , an& was carried home , and Mr . Clarke , surgeon , called in , who stitched up the wound . Tbe son's and daughter ' s anxiety were then directed to the mother , whilst the ' gentleman ' and bis men , having no further interruption , finished their diabolical jw > with cheerfulness . B at there was another scene to finish the piece . What does this honourab le gentleman next do but procure a magistrates summons , in the name of the barbarous miscreant who cut the woman ' s leg , against the mother , W »« Bon , and daughter for assault , thereby depriving all of them of the opportunity of giving evidence t and the poor woman had to be conveyed some miles in the state she was in to appear before the magistrates , when they wereall three bou nd over *• appear at the Session , —the villain who woundoo
her being the prosecutor . If the fads be as here stated , the scoundrel " gentleman" ought to be gibbelied . We hope the particufars of the trial at the Sessions will be sent us with the names of all the parties . The Kino-Pit Colliers— We did publish the sub scriptions received for these men last week . iu 6 ¦ paragraph was amongst the Newcastle news . R . T . JVJOHRJSON , Nottingham , forgot to insert tne day ot meeting in his forthcoming notice : oj course it was of no ufe . . W . Pin ' field . RfcODitCK . — We have ma > fr the only
use we can of his lettei—sent it to Mr ( ,. < jve . A Charttist , Tower Hamlets , press / - * •¦¦> : t , aten-¦ tion of all C iartinis , the UtCessUfi » j exertion on behalf of the Jamuies of our J > fcuds i » dui ance .
Untitled Article
Stephen Hyland , the approver . Q . Bo you know Kennedy , the prisoner at the bar ? A , Yes , and by virtue of my oath I never knew any harm of the boy in my life J H . B . Hyland -was ordered off tbe table—a bill of indictment sent up to tbe Grand Jury against him—put on bis trial—convicted , and had sentence of df ^ th passed on Mm instanter . The evidence for the Grown closed here .
Patrick Rei' . lv , for prisoner , said he overtook the prisoner at tlie town on the evening oT the' 6 th of May last , near his own beuse ; but was *> drunk , tfcat witness -would not pay him fifteen shillings he owed him for Bhoes . Tho prisoner would aot let witness quit him till he drank with him . Witaess -would not have returned with him , but was afraid he -would fall in the ditch . They -went to one PeSPs , in Kishavf&nna ; prisoner called for a pot of ate , and soon after quit him ; it -was after nightfall . Witness did not sea him after , till he saw him in Court .
In answer to quesUeas by the Court , said he lives within a Kile of the feisoner ' s , and within about two miles of Mr . Sparks . He heard Kennedy was taken prisoner next day . He never told Sparks or any other person that Kennedy had been so drunk that evening ; Kemedy was a lad « f very good cha-T&cter . In his cress-eXEsainataons Mr . Reiily said he had been attacked by the defenders himself , some time before ; but had beaten them cS . Catherine Drtff , s-worn—lives at Kiaha'wjnna , the prisoner and Paddy Ksilly came into her h&nse about nightfall , the night Mr . Sparfate bouse -was attacked , Kennedy iras the drunkest msn she ever saw , tfeey drank a pot of ale together . Mr . Keilly -went avr » y , and Kennedy quarrelled -with -witness for not giving him more liquor , she -would not let him stay any longer in the house lor fear of the soldiers ; he -went as she thought to his own house , lives -withki five or Bix perches of witness .
Rose Kennedy , sworn—laves at the new chapel , saw the prisoner , tbe night of the attack at Mr . Sparks , he came to her father ' s between ten and eleven at night , they -were all in bed but witness . Ho -wa ? bo drunk , he -was hardly able to -walk ; he Bat by ihe fire , as much as he could do -was to keep from falling . He -was courting -witness , she heard tbe shots , and was afraid they -would -wakes her father ; and fihe made the prisoner go out , she pnt him out by force , because her father -would be angry if he found > mn there , she said she loved the prisoner , and let him visit her against her father ' s consent several nights . Counsel for the ; Crown did not cross-examine her from motives of delicacy ; ahe appeased a modest asd very beautiful girL Here the evidence fox the priBOuer closed , the Jury retired and in eighteen hours and a half brought in their verdict" Guilty . "
On account of tbe -evidence in favour of this prisoner , his remarkable good character and tbe informer ' s evidence that fear alone made him lodge examinations , but above all as one of the Jury refused to find him guilty till his brothers were going to throw him . out of the window , several gentlemen , grand jurors , and others presented a petition in his behalf to tbe Solicitor-General , -who promised to send it to the Lord Lieutenant ; but Kennedy was executed .
Untitled Article
TO THE EDITOR OF THE MORNINQ ADVERTISER . Sib , —Will you allow me space in your paper fot a word of comment upon the brutal and significant attacks to whioh I have been subjected in the Times newspaper , since my successful opposition to the Messrs . Walter , in their attempts to usurp the representation of Nottingham . I shall pass over the libels which appeared in that journal in connection with the two elections , and which appeared prior to the recent decision of the Court of Queen ' s Bench upon the Rule to arrest judgment upon the only oount , in a long indictment , upon which I waa tried
and found guilty at Lancaster . I pass these by ; as a writ in a civil action for those libels was served upon , the Solicitor for the Times on the evening preceding the publication of the very ignorant letter of a " Special Plaader , " whioh appeared in yesterdas ' a number of that journal . Before I offer a few remarks upon that letter , permit me to observe that I laid the two recent outrageous articles which appeared in the Times newspaper in connexion with my case , before counsel , with the intention of proceeding against the responsible parties , and upon which I received the following opinion , from an authority which will be considered better than that of the law-reoruit of the Times . It runs : —
" I am of opinion that that part of the article in the Times of the 9 lh June , 1843 , which I have marked with ink in the margin is a libel upon Mr . O'Connor ; and that he might sustain either an indictment , or an action , against the proprietors of that paper . I also think it possible that the Court of Queen ' s Bench might grant a criminal information against the proprietor npon the application of Mr . O Conner , but their so doing would , I think , mainly depend upon the ability of Mr . O'Connor to negative , by affidavit , the truth of the charge contained in the fifth count of the late indictment against him , on
which alone I understand he was originally' found piiilty . The Court expects an applicant for the orfroordinary powers of tbe Court to come before them with clean hands ; and if Mr . O'Connor negatives , oa oath , the guilt of the charge imputed to him , I see no reason , In justice , why the Court should not afford him the same protection and advantages which they would afford to any other innocent individual against so violent and mischievous a libel as this appears to me to be . If a criminal information is moved for , it must be ^ move » i this term , which ends next Thursday , and it cannot be moved for the last day of term . "
Now , Sir , as an Irishman answers one question by asking another , I think I may answer " Who is the traitor" ? by asking , " Who is the libeller" * With respect to the commentary of the "Special Pleader" upon my speech at Manchester , it applies to the Times' Manchester correspondent rather than to me . In the short notice with which the Times . honoured my speech at Manchester , there is not one word of truth . I never mentioned the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland , the Irish Secretary , or George IV . ; all of which the Times puts into my mouth . There was not a single resolution passed , although the Times correspondent communicates the fact that several resolutions were passed .
And now . Sir , as to what I did say relative to the charge of treason . I said : — " They talk of making the agitation for Repeal , treason : why , they would have made the agitation for Reform , treason , had they dared to do so . Treason , indeed ! What a whole nation to be guilty of treaBon ! If it was made treason to-morrow , and if my conscience , my mind , and my judgment , approved the treason , then should I bo compelled to commit it , in conjunction with my countrymen peacefully struggling against oppression . " Sir , the difference between Mr . Walter and me , as Journalists , is this : my name stands bold ' y in the imprint , as the registered
proprietor , while he tries to gratify his petty vengeance with impunity under that sympathy which a defenceless female would be sure to receive at the bands of a British jury . I mach doubt that there is another instance on record of a journalist so far prostituting the gentleman to the wounded feelings of the angry politician , as is furnished by the Times in its endeavours to mark me out for unrelenting persecution ; and to meet and beat which I rely not morp upon my own vigilance and discretion than on the overstrained exertion of Mr . Walter and his tools , and which must create loathing and disgust in the mind of every honest Englishman .
If such are the means by which the Walters hope to dispose of political opponents , they will find themselves mistaken ; for wherever they present themselves before an English constituency there shall I be also , determined to resist so gross a violation of all those rules by which the gentleman , the politician , and the journalist should be bound . In conclusion , Sir , I must say that it is rather an unfair mode of procedure to have a speech reported for me by the Manchester correspondent of the Times , which I never made , and then be arraigned upon the falsehood when published ia the Times .
1 have the honour to remain , Sir , Your obedient Servant , Feargus O'Connob . 6 , Chapel-place , Hammersmith , 14 th June , 1843 .
Untitled Article
THE PRESS GANG—THE BLOOD CRY . The Tory presB , from the Times downward , is demanding the blooc of the Irish Repealers , with a yell of savage recklessness which we scarcely supposed that at this day could have been assumed . We give , as- " a sample of the sack , " the following from the mouthpiece of the Sheffield Tories , the Sheffield Mercury : - After some stupid abuse of Popery , the Editorial bloodhound thus proceeds : —
" We have already stated that measures are being taken to meet the difficulty at the point of the bayonet . Would it not be better to meet the agitation with a halter iii hand ? We have had a great deal of political special pleading of late about abstract rights—there jis no evil ia social life , no infringement of tbe common law , that is not capable of being argued by the same modus operandi . We wdM a well-definedj cure , not for those who are taught relellion , so much as for those who teach it " * * I " We trust Parliament will apply a strong ] remedy to portending evils . " will apply a strong ] remedy to portending evils . "
* * j * " But , Bay the Irish demagogues , the Union was an act of the Legislature , and it is competent in any British subject Jo petition for the Repeal of any Act of Parliament . This is true in the abstract , but the Union—the right of succession—the Monarchy are all fixed and settled by the Legislature , and , in our opinion , they are ail troasoa or there is no such thing as treason . " j Did ever such a born-fool handle pen before ? ! " The Union—the rtsht of succession—the Monarchy , all treason" ! ; these are his exact words .
Gods , what a " best possible instructor" ! " It is one thing Jfor Parliament to Repeal an Act 1 having reference to questions of privilege or taxation , aad another for the Legislature to stultify itself by an Act which deserves no other name than / e / o de se . ' *\ * " Sir Robert Peel has no alternative but prompt , immediate , and vigorous measures—measuresjthat shall reach miscreants who carry on a sort of wholesale trade in murder and incendiarism , and who evade the law with impunity . " There , geatle reader , there is the spirit of Toryism wi | h a vengeance , j Meet agitation with a halter in hand 3 Should Sir Robert Peel want a " Walking gallows" to assist in " tranquillizing " Ireland , we hope he will not forget the special
claims of the " gallows" Editor of the Sheffield Mercury . Declare the Repeal agitation treason , and punish the agitators as traitors ! Softly , Mr . Addlebrains ; if to petition for the Repeal of the Union , or even the alteration of the line of succession , be treason , what were those who altered the succession by expelling James II ., and calling in Dutch William ; j Eh ? We have always heard that they were " glorious revolutionists . " Your doctrine of " treason" " won't do nowa-days , ne how , " as the Yankees would say . Every generation has clearly the right oi willing by what form of Government I it will be protected , —all your m » 8 t , y parchments and Castlekeach Acts notwithstanding .
From this and other specimens of English Toryism , O'Connell may see wbat he has to expect at the hands of that party . And yet , even at such a moment ; when the hand-writing is on the wall , * when the ships are in the offing , and the demon cry of j " Put your trust in God , And keep your powder dry , " Is almost ringing through tbe land ; when the " Tory hunters" are panting for the blood of the Irish people , and waiting but for one false step , to " let slip the dogs of war" ;
" Like the swift lightning , which doth cease Ere one can say it lightens" ;—at such an hour , 0 'Connei . l spurns the aid of the only party in England , who either can or will efficiently assist him in the carrying of Repeal ! Well , well ; Dan knows his own game , or thinks he does so . His speech at the Corn Exchange , last week , wherein he denoanced the English Chartists , has created a spirit of indignation ] against him that may not be very easily allayed , j We speak not of the Chartists , but of the Repealers , whose grief and vexation at
this conduct of P'Connell it is impossible adequately to describe . The best possible feeling was existing between ! them and the Chartists , who were mutually aiding ] andjassisting each other , when lo 1 Mr . O'Connell throws in the apple of discord 1 and strives to undo all the good that has been effected by the real patriots of both parties . Many parties , even , of his best friends , speak and write most strongly Ion the matter . Wo are inundated with letters to which we , acting from a different
spirit to that which ] the writers ascribe to him , do not-give currenoy . We desire to give every man credit for the best [ motives by which he can bo actuated ; and we make Mr . O'Connell no exception . Possibly he may have in view some stroke of policy which we do ' not yet see , and which may sufficiently excuse the apparent suicidal course he is pursuing : " Charity hopeth all things . " But let O'Connell be wary . We have laboared hard to obtain for him with the English Chartists credit for
sincerity in this movement—credit for a honest purpose to carry through Repeal , and not to bully back the Whigs to power ; if this be his purposeif he be as honest now as we [ have tried to think , let him uot prevent the hands and hearts of Irishmen from uniting for the salvation of their fatherland ; nor imagine that Ireland can obtain her freedom by the disunion of her sons . Many Irishmen who have not yet joined the Repeal Association , but were about to do so , declare that , if the English Chartists are to be expelled , they will not join it . Others , who are members , declare that they
will now join the Chartist Association . Let O'Connell pause ere bo finally reject the generously tendered co-operation of the English Chartists ; let him reflect that the battle is not yet over , nor the victory won . And , at all events , let not his con duct , absurd and foolish though it may be , induce Englishmen to be unjust to others and themselves ; to withhold their aid from Ireland struggling for her rights . Let as remember always that honour and interest combine to induce us to sympathise
with our Irish brethren . Honour bids us to assist them , that the remembrance of crimes committed by English tyrants may be effaced by the fraternal deeds of English patriots ; and interest , that our labour market may be freed from Irish competition , and all the deadly consequences which have followed in its train ; while the manly feeling of our nature should command us to assist them that the right may triumph .
The Northern Star. Saturday, June 17, 1843.
THE NORTHERN STAR . SATURDAY , JUNE 17 , 1843 .
2to Ffieavevff Antf (8qvvt&Povtoent0≫
2 To ffieavevff antf ( 8 Qvvt&povtoent 0 >
Untitled Article
¦ ¦ 1 4 THE NORTHERN STAR . j
One Law Fob The Rich And Another Fob The Poor.—A Case Occurred At Marlborough-Street
One Law fob the Rich and another fob the Poor . —A case occurred at Marlborough-street
-
-
Citation
-
Northern Star (1837-1852), June 17, 1843, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct937/page/4/
-