On this page
- Departments (2)
-
Text (7)
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
ITarieteefj* ITarietkg *
-
Murder at Birmingham.—
-
Untitled Article
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
Joh * Postsb and Anthony Brown ( Stout ) hare been chosen Sheriffs of Dublin . The Corporation is evidently on its bier . It was fcCHOBRBD that the Queen was to accompany Prince Albert to the re-riew at Woolwich , but it was urged that if her Majesty determined on being present , the Prince would have to take with him a litile baggage , as it is not etiquette to appear in the presence of the Q # een , on such an occasionbut in
, full regimentals ! The circumstance of Doctor Lardner having had his own brows adorned by bis wife , is viewed by him , on the principle of eqnal justice , as a sufficient justification for his rendering the sam £ favour to another . Ill-luck in matrimony appears to run in the Doctor ' s family . He has a brother , who , like himself , is separated from his spouse , though we are not aware that a divorce , as in the case of Mrs . Dionygius , has been obtained .
Pkzscs A t . bkbt proceeds admirably in his study Of the English language , and is a tolerable wit . When he was thrown from his horse , the other day , in the Park , he said to his Aid-de-Camp , who dismounted to render him assistance . " Ah , ha ! I thought I had improved in my riding , bnt I find that I have fallen off !" The Police Reports tells u 3 that , at Lambethstreet , Joseph Lardner , a wretched-looking object , was charged before Mr . Bingham with ill-treating his wife , and threatening to take away her Hfe by cutting her throat . Verily , these " Lardners' * are a queer set . Their conduct towards wives is absolutely horrible .
Labdjteb has , it appears , been trebly punished for his amorous delinquency ; 'for not only did Heaviside bide him , bnt he has been driven to hide himself , both before his affair with the Captain and since . Tbt ; e Gentility . —Gentility i 3 neither in birth , manner , nor fashion—but in the kind . A high sense of honour—a determination never to take a mean advantage of another—an adherence to irath , delicacy , and politeness towards those with whom you have dealings are the essential characteristics of a gentleman . The / light of Mrs . Heaviside was little matter of surprise to i ^ any . persons , to whom ehe had been represented by her doating husband as a perfect
A Sxaii . Skin!—It is stated that there has been recently presented to the Museum of the Asiatic Society of Bengal the skin of a boa , which measured twenty fees in length . When shot , the boa measured twenty-one feet ! It had swallowed a spotted deer , which was taken out of the inside not too much decomposed for the spots in the Bkin measured three feet one inch across . " Prixce Albebt , with commendable modesty and discretion , presented himself at the review at frool-. wich , the other day , in the undress of a Field-Marshal . It is the opinion of all who know him , that -when engaged on military duty , plain clothes become him best ! The Chikesb have a designation "laboriously Tile . " How admirably it applies to the Whigs and Whiggery . ,
The Rex > erend Dr . Lardner , on being askedhow he managed to effect the seduction of Mrs . Heaviside in so short space of time , replied , with the utmost coolness , " by getting on the light side of her . Pabxiajtektabt PEiraoifS are like Morrison ' s pills . The effect is proportioned to the number . The House must be well dosed before a " motion " can be expected . —London Magazine .
THE RETEXEJfD IX > XHABIO . " Oh , give me back my early days Of innocence , " she cried . ** Confound your innocence , " he says , w Give me my once sound hide !" TH 2 Two Paths op Yibtce . —There are two paths by which man strives to ascend to virtue ; if the one is closed to thee , the other is open . " The fortunate acquire her by the struggles of action , £ he nnfortuaafe by the psins of . suffering . Happy he whose friendly fate has conducted nun through bt-Lh . —Schiller .
A Cos ., bt thb Queks . — " Albert , " quoth her jocular Majesty , "' when I see you and Frank Seymour together , what sign do you remind me of 1 " Of course tiie juvenile Field Marshal had no idea and speedily gave it np . " The horse and groom , ' replied "Victoria . Tiiis , Miss Spring Rice says , is intire-ly the Queen ' s own . The se-nsibilitt of Prince Albert appeared to be strongly worked upon on the night of his visit to the German opera , for he was seen for the first time since his coming to England to blush—it is presumed at the poor figure cut by his countrymen and women on the stage . Poor enough , Heaven knows !
Penny . Postage Covebs . —Many letters to which the ** aduesive" stamp had been applied , arrive at the Post-office minus that adhesive " stamp , "The plan of pre-payment at the time letters are put into the post-otaee is decidedly preferable to . the B plaster" system ; in fact , very few comparatively of the former have yet been used . —Standard . An Amebicas Itoiak , of a cannibal tribe , once stated that he knew a former Bishop of Quebec . In conversation with a traveller , the Indian having Btade an allusion to the Bishop , was asked if he knew him ! " "Know him ! " was the savage ' s reply— " why , I hive eaten him !"
Whes Lord Bloohfibld , at the dejune between the acts of the Royal military farce played at Woolwich , the other day , remarked to th # juvenile Field-Marshal that he should order a few shells to be thrown for his Royal Highness ' s amusement , the Prince , -with much soldier-like sagacity , inquired what shells they were ! Wijosoh Casile , it is rumoured , is to be enlarged , in order to afford , additional accommodation tc Prince Albert , who * ideas , keeping pace with hi : ** enlarged * ' fortune , would fain possess the whole oi the building , with a view to its conversion into t German oarrack , for the garlick-eating and idle pensioners on English industry .
The Adhesives . —At the west-end of the town , since the appearance of postage labele , the Ministers are called tiic Adhesives , and it i 3 supposed that they patronised the Stamps because they are emblematical of their own peculiar ingenuity in sticking to tneir places . . | The late communications between his Neapolitan ; Majesty and uur ambassador , showed so strong an i infusion of " julphuric acid , " as to leave little hope that the temper of the parties would-be soon " sweetened , " or that-a sugar-candy termination of the affair might be looked for so shortly afterwards to ' a certainty . This unexpected result is ascribed , as ¦ far as the royal sslphur-dealer is concerned , to the liberal use qt "" ifcapW soap , " which , luckily for him , ! speedily put a better faee on the matter .
Three GiJxtvana were excused serving the office [ of constable at ILwsiagton last week , ou the ground that they were gentlemen , and as such , very unfit to perform- , fee duties of the office . There cannot , we should jfrin ^ be isuch doubt of that , unless , indeed , Dogberry ' s axiom be admitted , ' * the most desattless & $ n to be constable , " when gentlemen must be allowed to present higher claims than most Others .
A &OBE SUBJECT . Two reasons Lardner has for feeling sore , As eVry man of common sense well knows ; He loses her by whose fair eyes he swore , But loses not the smarting of the blows . ExTBAVAGAKCE . —Mrs . Walker , of Newark , Ohio , presented her husband with twin boyB , being the third pair since their marriage in 1837 . No matter , wheat at 37 $ cents , a bushel , and pork at two cents . aad a half per pound in Ohio—plenty to eat—they jBftj go on ; all that we have to say is , that it would he deemed very extravagant here in New York . — Afcw York Star . _ . ¦
T * um—There 3 s a passage in Tillotson that should be panned ty all those notorioa * for what is called dnwing the long boa . " He observes that truth is always consistent with itself , and needs nothing to . hdtp it out ; It is always sear at hand , and sits upon ear lips , and ready to drop out before we are awcre ; whereas a lie is troublesome , and sets a natfasaveiition upon the rack ; and one trick needs » great many more to make it good . Joseph Hume . —There is nothing like economy , to
and there is no economist e ^ ual Joseph Hume . Only think of his saying , the other evening , when the grant for the expenses of the new Houses of Parliament was before the House , " He thought even now it would be better to leave the £ 150 , 000 that had been thrown away , and go to a site in the Green Park or elsewhere , where it would be less dark " , damp , and" dreary . " Here ' s a pretty economist , forsooth ! Content to leave £ 150 , 000 thrown away Oh , Joe !
Pleasakt Prospect . —An American paper says , u The Great Western brought us over a fresh supply of the' swell mob . ' . They stopped at the Astor House and Blancard ' g , stole a quantity of sovereigns at each , and then disappeared . This summer they will be as plenty as blackberries . Each steamer will bring a fresh lot . " A ComrrBTHAS , who had gained his cause at the late Gloucester Assizes , was asked if it was not Sergeant Ludiow who had so satisfactorily conducted his cause ! " Oh , no , " replied the countryman , " I didden employ a Sergeant , I had Captain Talfourd to speak up for me . "
Three . —The following important coincidences ! . were observed by a French journalist at the concert is the Garden pi the Tuileriea , Paris , on the evening cf the King ' s fete ( May 1 ) : — " The tri-coloured flag and ecfckade of Trance everywhere met the eye . -. /^ Stte fMargBfllaiBe * was played three times . The : , l »< BM « f the Royal Family present were three—the ~ Qmbb * her daughter , the Princess Clementine , and tor daaghter-uflaw , the Duchess de Nemour 3 ; and ' -.- a&d the gowssjof her Majesty and the Princesses hadrespec&veljrihr&e flounces .
Untitled Article
TO MR . LEECH , A MANCHESTER OPERATIVE . " A time there was , ere England ' s griefs began , When eTery rood of ground maintained its man . " My beab Leech , —I thank God that the day has arrived when even those who would gladly do without the people are compelled to seek popular assistance . I write this letter to you , not because 1 have " witnessed your good breeding or courtesy , " nor yet because I have " read of your good sense ; " no , I write it to you because you are " A plain blunt man . " TO MR . LEECH , A MANCHESTER OPERATIVE .
I write it to you because you have proved yourself to be an honest man , and a very able opponent of those who would feed the starving operatives of Manchester , without letting them knew from whence the means were to come . I have never desired a too close investigation into the various results likely to spring from Universal Suffrage , and for this reason ; one seotion of society would object to one measure , and another to another measure . Each section would cavil at a portion of the measure , of the whole of which they
could not judge until it was wholly put in operation . I have , however , at all times kept before my hearers and readers the one paramount advantage which I anticipate from Universal Suffrage . It is the restoration of my fellow man from a too artificial to a more natural state of life . This blessing can only be accomplished by discharging the overgrown and over-populated towns of their squalid , artificial , and superabundant population , and by once more bedecking the face of nature with the comfortable , modest homes of Natures children
Now , Leech , I have gone further than any man living in endeavouring to repeal the legislative union between Great Britain and Ireland ; but now I would not accept of the measure unless accompanied by Universal Suffrage . Neither would I struggle for a moment for Universal Suffrage , if I was not morally convinced that the result would be a restoration of man to complete and entire independence ; which never can take place , till he enjoys for the whole of life a field wkereon to exercise his labour . Can
anything be more galling , heart-rending , and mortifying to an industrious man , with a wife and family dear to Mm , than being told by an employer that his services are no longer required , or that he haB grown too stiff in his service to remove bale 3 fast enough from one end of the premises to another ? lou told me the fact , Leech , and it made me very sorrowful . Now if that old man had a hold for the whole of his life upon five acres of ground , nature would be his helpmate , and every April shower a fellow labourer with his growing family .
In consequence of the present employment of the operative class being so very foreign to that which agricultural pursuits would impose upon them , I have to contend , firstly , against that difficulty , and , secondly , against the complete ignorance of the operatives , both of agricultural pursuits , and the value of labour when applied to land for a man ' s otrn benefit . But nature having implanted in each man ' s heart a reliance upon the "kindly fruits of the earth , so as in due time the man may eujoy them , " natural feeling , in consequence thereof , will quickly come to the aid of the most ignorant .
I have more than once drawn a comparison , between the former and the present condition of the working people . Formerly society was divided into small rural communities , so closely allied hi interest , and so mutually dependent upon each other for companionship , as to make them resemble a large family . Suppose seven hundred to constitute the village population . There were masters and mea reciprocally depending upon each other for everything . The stamp upon each man ' s fabric bore the sterling representation of each man ' s value in the community . They possessed a sufficiency , but none either extravagantly or exclusively . If the master had £ ' 3 , 00 u it was well ; but even that he could not have amassed without the hands by which he made it having their little store .
Thus did the machinery work well . and , harmoniously , and the little community were happy . No policemen—no Commissioners of Poor—no spies—no informers—no Tom Clarksoas were known In the neighbourhood . The civil power , consisting oPtWj whole population , with the exception of the offended , was the law's only $ taff and the law's best protection . Drunkenness or immorality seldom occurred
because they set an indelible brand upon the vicious . Every man was known to his neighbour , and every man's character was of value to his neighbour , and vice was hunted from the society . But if you now \ see scores of drunken men in your streets—if pick-• pockets are let loose upon you , or if offenders i swarm , you pass the druuken and the profligate by , ' ; as having no concern in his fate , because the overi grown community admits of no brotherhood .
; ¦ . What is the present state of the working classes ? | A whole family will rise together from the loathsome I bed : the prematurely aged parents , accompanied by ¦ their dwurf and stunted children , with hurried , ; tottering step , are seen , by the flickering light Of the , expiring ] amp , wending their way with half-closed eyes to the spot where the angry-sounding bell
sum-| monses a thousand slaves to do a tyrant's bidding—to make money for a tyrant ' s self . Five minutes too late , and then the real value of your labour is tested by a heavy fine in the overseer ' s " black book . " There you work by machine precision , man being made tributary to , every mechanical revolution . For fourteen hocrs , in this unwholesome place , the anxious parent is compelled to see the exhausted offspring tottering through the required evolutions ; until at length , by the fresh-lighted lamp , they grope their way to the sleeping-plaoe , where the mother opens the door of that which to her is no home . No enjoyment tnere—no meeting of the ¦ whole family , from different and suitable avocations i —no mirth—no song—no narrative of each one ' s
j daily pursuit . The old hen and her little brood lie i them down to broken rest , until the poor father , | driven to resuscitate nature , as he conceives , but ' really to produce a littl « excitement , returns from i the drunken revel , and breaks the family's slumber . In families , even in small families , Nature points ' out the different hours at which the young and the i old , and even members nearly of the same age , I should eat , and drink , and sleep , and play , and '¦ rise , and go to bed ; but , alas!—ah , alas ! the whole
I working community , of all ages , sexes , dispositions , 1 and constitutions—the old and the young—the firm 1 and the infirm—the robust and the weakly , must rise , must eat , must drink , m 7 ist work , must lie down < , together in one solitary mass , & 3 mere prisoners in this sea-bound dungeon . ' . The traveller s © es the wealth of the master , but seldom witnesses the maiden ' s pallid cheek—the infant ' s
! j rwisted limb—the prematurely aged sire , and hag' gard dame ; and little does he think that every guinea ' in the lich man ' s coffer has been coined from the ¦ j maiden's blush and the infant ' s marrow ! No , Leech , ' he in turn makes money of the master ' s speculation i upon the labour of the slave ; and even if he did see : he would tell you that the Doctors have declared ¦ it wholesome ! Here then , in your present state , you have a
com-. plete pervermon of Nature ' s wise decrees . Here 1 you have thousands of slaves depending upon one ; tyrant , and hence , instead of your national character with other countries now depending upon the industry of England ' s sons , her greatness is boasted 1 as belonging to her tyrants' enterprize and speculation ! I am too long upon the dark side of the picture . I cannot bear it . It makes me weep , and makes me ; very mournful , to think that I should have devoted
• . the prime of life to the cause of those who tamely i bear such blasted ignominy , when in twenty-four hours the giant could crush the pigmy . I now come , my dear Leech , to the bright side I of the picture . 1 have been accounted the very best practical farmer in my own county , which is the [ largest in Ireland ; and , therefore , I feel myself ! competent to . advise upon agricultural subjects . I ! shall come at once to the boiling pot—the family 1 group—the blazing fire—the clean hearth—the ) peaceful home—and the happy family . Good God ,
Untitled Article
if I could but see it ! Yon have newly forty millions of acres of laud in this country . More than six millions of that has bees taken from the people by Act of Parliament within the last sixty yean , and yet I would not even rob the robbers ! No ? there is no necessity . Machinery , with its great improvements , has caused aa over population , and the political economists say that when one branch is overstocked other channels of employment open for the expenditure of labour . WelL I agree ; and I , therefore , wish to open a new , a sure , and a wholesome channel ; I want for one million families , Iconldbntaeeit ! Yon have nearly ftoty Wj lions ofacresof land inthia country . More than
consisting , say , of seven million persons—that is , husband , wife , and five children . —I want for those seven millions , five million acres of lands at any , even the most exorbitant rent ; for when labour has a fair field for its exercise , rent is but an item . I want those five acres , and from them I h&YO before shown that a man and his family , as producers and manufacturers of certain articles , which furnish a mere evening ' s amusement , may make nearly one hundred pounds sterling per annum . In this I have not included fruit , eggs , honey , and a thousand things which flow with a freshness from man's own land
produced by his own hand . I have not said one word of the difference of a head of half-rotten cabbage bought in the market , as compared with that fresh from the garden to the pot . I have not said a word of the difference between milk and milk and water ; in fact , I have not said a word of the difference between wholesome and unwholesome food . I want five millions of acres at any rent , to take off seven millions of wretched slaves from the Blave market . I think that done , that the reduction of the surplus population working for tyrants would at once throw the balance of power into the hands of the
operaatives . The dead weight weuld be taken off . The unemployed reserve would no more remain at the disposal of the master ; and , as the terror of the slave . I only want one-eighth part of the land for one-half the population , at a fair , or even an unfair rent ; and to shew the value of labour over all other commodities , let this plan be ratified by Act of Parliament , and in twenty-four hours the one million heads of families would have a loan of one hundred millions , at three per cent ., thrust upon them as a national debt ; aud where would be such security on earth for money ? That sum would give
each man one hundred pounds for a small modest house and stock ; and for which he wtuld be liable for £ 3 per annum . Well , suppose he has his five acres , what then t Why , Leech , think of the independent farming labourer getting up in the morning at sunrise if he is well , later if he is poorly , and not at all if disagreeable to him , and no pay Btopped . Think of the mother rising when she felt that duty and nature called , and the children called , according to their age and constitution . Leech , I fear that some of the murky slaves themselves will laugh at me for thinking of
those delicacies , but what do they cost i Nothing , but are the produce of good laws . Well , Leech , think of the wholesome work before breakfast , and the good breakfast , and then the bustle of the little ones going to the Tillage school , kissing the mother and the father , and the dog and the cat , and every thing in the house because it is their own house . Then think of the day —too short for willing labour ; and then the children returning at evening , each running , first to its parents , then to its own little flower knot , then the prattle while the father cuts the cabbage or gets
ready other vegetables for the suppar , the raflther milking the cow that actually smiled oa theiUtle brood it fed ! Think of the neighbours . " Well , master Will , thou ' at a rarish garden full of staff this year ; and , bless the young uns , but they look as though they could manage it ! " Then think of the fireside , if winter , and the shady side of the hedgerow with the neighbours , if summer . iShea think what a curiosity if a policeman , or man inVred were to pass by , or a monkey in the shape of rifew were to take out pencil and book to take down every word you said about fighting ( &aU : 4 fcairilMfQtt » '
or the reception which the robber would 'Ifelwith who wosld come for one cabbage t Y ^ W that , while the robber , injustice ^ BtqW ^ frylSpig » aa arms , steals your wife from your side atthe « une unseemly hour both winter and summer—steal * jour little darlings from you before you have begun to feel their comfort—steals you from your house to make money for a tyrant—and then thruata you into a pothouse to relieve exhausted nature ^ there to pay for the very force that ruins you I Think of the child ' s
anxiety to see the first blossom on the tree , and to mark every trace of God ' s omnipotence aud boanty , through his tender care of his creatures in the change of seasons ; each , though differing in temperature and length of day and night , bringing its own-eomi |> rt 3 , ; th f man workin g with _ God for six months , arid returning thanks to God that he has made the earth in that time yield wherewithal to live upon through the winter ' s chi'ling blast !
How different this , Leech , from your one long , monotonous , and coBtinuoua season of grief and sorrow ! No sun to cheer you in your task , no winter's day , no . summer ' s night . This is Sunday morning , Leech , and perhaps the Christian may say my place shouldbe atchurch . Well , ami not worshipping God ? am I not rendering to him the most complete adoration by endeavouring to fulfil his commandments ? Or should I be more acceptably engaged in smelling the spirituous breath of some royal bastard , preaching peace upon earth , and good-will among men , " while he lived by the sword , and caused eternal war upon earth ? But , Leech , think of the parson to your district—the meek , mild , kind follower oi Jesus—weeping with the sorrowful , and rejoicing
with the glad ; think he may be your own son , administering comfort to your own neighbours , and , like the good divines of old , saying , "Thank ye !" for what plenty could afford from its store . Think then of your family dressed for church ; think of the unostentatious pride of all your neighbours vieing in the appearance of their children ; and , above all , think of the man who absented himself from the modestly-built house of prayer ; and think of the surprise of all if a drunken man was seen on the way side ! Then , Leech , should you be first made to forget God before , as men , you could work out your own political salvation ? Na , no . Then the happiness here below would increase the hope in the future .
Leech , "Look on this picture and on that , " and decide for yourself ? Now the land produces more for pleasure houses , and horses doing what in part would be the pleasing work of man , than it does for man . Leech , the very idea of meddling with the land now affrights the loyal and the timid out Of their senses , and why so ? Have yon ever asked yourself , and answered it ? If not , I will answer it for you . It is because the land gives the franchise , and because the franchise gives , in church patronage , army patronage , navy patronage , police patronage , post-office , excise , customs , tax , and all other kinds of patronage , an annual sum greater than the whole rental of the United
Kingdom ; and hence , where they lose a pound in rent by bad management , that very bad management gives them three pounds in patronage . Let me see if I can prove this . In the reign of Henry IV ., the nobles and gentry took much land into pasturage , whereby many agricultural labourers were thrown out of employment ; and immediately , " Universal Suffrage" then being the standard of franchise , a law was passed declaring , that the practice had caused much idleness , and consequent poverty among the people , and also prohibiting the landlord from using his own lasd , to the disadvantage of society . " Now they say that they cannot interfere with the land ; and the Duke of Newcastle says he has a right to do what he likes with his own .
Now , Leech , one word upon a subject on which you have proved yourself capable of teaching all the political economists—I mean a repeal of the Corn Laws . The masters say their only wish is to relieve the labourer . Now , think you that any man can devise so complete and effectual a repeal of the Corn
Untitled Article
taws as the fire-acre system would produce ! and think yon that the eotton masters will join in that plan—aplaA whioh would at once make the poor man independent of all men ? No , they never will ! Think you that Daniel O'Connell will join in itt laws as the five-acra system would produce ! and think you that the eotton mastew wiU rota in that
No , no—a thousand times , no I Leech , the operatives , in their present state , remind me of the changed condition of the coach horses in Manchester . Before railroads were established , the coachman held a tight rein , with the whip in the rest . The horses were fat and mettlesome , and above their work ; but now that steam does their business , and that no man knows how the powers of steam may be increased , the whip never rests , and the reins hang loose upon the sluggard team . So with man ! Steam does his work , and he is now a creature entirely at the mercy of man ' s
invention and the improved power of machinery . My dear Leech , had I not had an eye to the storehouse , I never should have been a Radical . Living from hand to mouth destroys the independence and energy , and patriotism of man ; having a stake in the country makes him a noble being . I seek to give him that stake . All his vices are consequences of oppression and misrule ; while his virtues are characteristics of nature . I seek to develope the virtues . Man is born with propensities which may be nourished into virtues , or thwarted into vices , according to the moulding .
Will the whole people , then , join with my spirit , while my body is entombed in the dungeon ? Will they join with that spirit in doing their own work , not mine ? Will you begin in Manchester , and now let the whole people know what we expect from Universal Suffrage ? Will you establish Associations throughout the whole kingdom , to be called Chartist Agricultural Associations—Five-Acre Associationsor Landed-Labour Associations—or by any name you think will sufficiently distinguish the . object ; ana " preach to our flocks , and tell them that , their own apathy postpones the blessing , while their own energy would accomplish it in a month . Will you
tell them that a repeal of the Corn Laws would but open a new channel for speculation in human food ; and that bread reduced to the price stated by the humbugs , would so reduce wages , as to set every hand in England , Scotland , and Ireland to work at machinery , upon mere speculation , for six months ; and then every warehouse in Manchester would groan under your premature production , while you would walk by the baker ' s shop , your teeth watering at the great big penny loaf , which you would not have a farthing to buy one quarter of it with . Now establish these Associations , and prepare for Whitsun-week , to take the nation's will upon it . I speak to you i » the name and on behalf of all the
incarcerated virtue in the prison-houses . I appeal on behalfof your crippled children , your care-worn wifV j&nd your manly feeling . I appeal to you on behanm peace , for the present system must bring war and bloodshed . I appeal to you on behalf of one , whose whole life has been devoted to the cause of the most poor ; and who , when you read this , will be suffering a felon's punishment . Let me now hear no more about want of plans Lowry has given you a good one . I have given you fifty . O'Bvien has given you one . Binns , that distinguished young patriot , not only gives you plans , but hourly carries them into practice . This young gentleman deserves very , very well of the nation . I should like to see him minister of justice over our new world .
Now , my dear Leech , I have completed my last letter . I preferred doing this the day before my incarceration , to preparing myself for the Attorney-General . I leave the carrying out of the plan to those whom H 4 will change from slavery to Heavenborn freedom , if they will not work it , that they may be eternally slaves , and that their bodies may groan under the foulest oppression , is the sincere prayer and hearty wish of Your incarcerated but cheerful and devoted Pkiend and Servant , ¦ ' F&ARGUS O'CONNOB . May 10 , 1840 , . ¦ %
'' : F& ^ &TitfT every *** % f £ > th * Star **> keep this letter- «*» test T > y w ^ J eTF l may b ' e ^ ereaffcer tried , if t sa ^ iTe ^ Jmprisonmerit . If not , X desire that no hone « btll draw me to my resting-place , but that I . shall bf earned upon the shoulders of working men from the prison-house to the house of death , and then all my advice will be followed as though I had been inspired . I desire that no Whig shall be allowed to follow my remains , for it is not meet that they be murderers and mourners .
Untitled Article
TO THE MEN WITH FUSTIAN JACKETS , UNSHORN CHINS , AND BLISTERED HANDS , THEIR WIVES , AND CH 1 L' DREiX .
My oear Friends , —I call you my dear friends , and my only friends , because you are the only class of society who cares for me , or for whom I care a single straw . I have told you over and over again that there are not seven in the kingdom out of your class who would not rejoice to see my head upon Temple Bar , thank God for it ! but thank God , alao , that your love keeps my head upon my shoulders ; for without it the tyrant class would soon find good and sufficient reason for removing it . Now I begin to toll my story to you , because I don't want the rich or "comfortable to read it .
Upon Monday week I appeared in the Court of Queen ' s Bench to tell the Judges why I should not be imprisoned , but I felt so ill that I could not then proceed , and I was resolved not to allow a barrister to lessen my punishment at the expense of our cause . Had I employed counsel , his object would have been to throw all the blame upon others and to have white-washed me—hia client . Well , that course I would not allow ; and , upon my application , judgment was postponed till last Monday . On the Saturday previous , in consequence of increased illness , it was further postponed till Monday next , when I hope to b « able to act as my own advocate . On
Monday , after I left the Court , X was obliged instantly to betake myself to bed ; and upon that evening I was cupped on the left side , and at night I was copiously . blooded . On Tuesday I had a large blister applied to my breast ; aud dn Wednesday I had got so much worse that my phyBician thought it prudent to call another to his aid . Those two gentleiaen found it necessary to apply a burning powder over isr ? blistered chest , which gave me great pain ; and they dosed me at the rate of eight bottles a day—enough , you will say , to kill the devil . But I beat physicians , drugs , devil and all ; and after being for a whole week in bed , I got up on Sunday , and am now quite hearty .
For four nights I raved incessantly ; and this I only introduce to make you laugh at one conceit which haunted me for the greater part of that time . I had courts of justice , prisons , Chartists , Attorney-General , physical force , and the Queen ' s Bench eternally before me , and now , for the first time , I thought I was forced out of bed to go to the Queen ' s Bench ; and in trudging through highways and b yeways , across the fields , I was pursued by a hedgehog . At last I turned upon my pursuer , who , in his turn , retreated . At length I ran it down ; and , in endeavouring to catch it , its bristles stuck to the palm of
my hand , from which I could not disengage them , and is that situation I made my way to the Queen's Bench , where I saw the Attorney-General without his wig , and who , the moment I entered , churned the hedgehog as his wig , charged me with the theft , and put me upon my trial for the offence ; and there I remained with my handful during the whole of a long trial , after which I was found guilty of being a physical-force Chartist , the proof whereof was established most satisfactorily by the Attorney-General ' s wig being found in my possession . Now , that is true as the gospel .
So much for my disease , and the accompanying nightmare ; and now for yenr disorder , with its accompanying nightmare ; which , alas ! cannot be so easily removed . Your disorder is machinery , youx nightmare
Untitled Article
is over-production . My physicians were men , yours must be Universal Suffrage . No other power on earth , believe me , can either cure your disorder , or remove the nightmare from your chest . Now , you are conscious , whatever my enemies may say , that my demand for you has been , that your condition in society should , like that of the higher orders , be improved in the same ratio as the age improves . That while they ascend in the scale of comfoit , you should also ascend . Well , does this equitable adjustment ever take place 1 Let us see . The House u over-prod notion . My physicians were men , yours muri l * Unto
in which a monarch lived some two ceuturies back would now be Bcoffed at by a wealthy subject . The mansion of a peer of the eame date would be a sorry residence now for some of your cotton lords . So with the equipages , attendance , dress , feodj living , and , in short , luxuries of every description . All of these have gone on in the ascending scale , while you would rejoice to be placed in that generally proud posi tion which your forefathers ocoupied . Is it not so ? And if it is so , can those ordinances be just which have thus turned all improvements to class purposes , and party distinction «
To enlarge upon this subject would be a mere waste of time ; I throw the subject before you ; it is for you to say , Is it so , and , if so , why so ? " I say , it is so ; and I say that it is so , because the improved class legislate for themselves at your expense . Well , but others say why not lay down a plan by which Universal Suffrage can be accomplished ? I have laid down many , but none have ever been acted upon , and for the reason which I have more than once explained . It is this : —When those in work see the many wretched creatures out of employment they congratulate themselves upon their
own comparative situation , without reflecting whether it is such as their usefulness entitles them to . They , with their wives and children , measure their lot by comparison with the worse lot of others , and not by the standard of even-handed justice . Well , you will say , no matter what produces this state of things which thus deprives the unemployed of the assistance of the badly employed , so long as it is so , and so long as we are the sufferers and cannot remedy it . Well , but you can remedy it . The remedy has been pointed out by the Convention , and you would not adopt
the remedy . O'Brien has pointed out a remedy . Lowry has pointed out a remedy . Binns has pointed out a remedy . The Scotch people have pointed out remedies , and I have pointed out thousands of remedies ; and we are now many of us in prison , because you would not follow our remedies ; but you thought that you eould stand in the Market-place , and Bhut your eyes , and open your mouths , and see what God would send you ; and you forgot the old maxim that God only helps them who helps themselves . You actually , some of you , felt suspicion of Harney , Deegan , and others ,
who are either not tried , or very prudently pleaded guilty , to avoid a prison , in order still to be of service to the cause . Now , nothing can be more unfair than this . There is just about as much honour and glory in meeting a jury of shopkeepers as there is in fighting a mad dog . I rejoice that Harney was not prosecuted , and I still more rejoice to find him again in the field . What pleasure can it be to those at large to console themselves with the reflection that others are cooped up in Whig dungeons ? You
should , leave sucb , rejoicings to the Editor of the Champion , and not join in them . Your weakness has ev « r been your enemy ' s strength ; and what greater weakness can there be than condemning your poor but honest brethren upon mere suspicion and surmise . I advised Deegan to plead guilty , and rejoice that ho did so . He is an able man , a zealous man , and an honest man . I advised many othersto plead guilty , and I so advised them to serve , aud not to injure the cause .
Well now , enough of this . Let us have no more squabbling . Let every man work as Binns is working , and let every man think as I have always thought , that the whole burden rested upon my own shoulders ; and if every man had thought that , I and others would not now have been in a dungeon . This is the second letter which I have written this day before my incarceration ; and those who would not listen to me when I spoke to them , will they now attend to me while I write them ! Will you , in spite of all unjust authority , prepare yourselves to hold such meetings aa were never before witnessed
m this country during the Whitsun holidays « You have now time enough to make all the necessary arrangements . Will you abandon the house of drunkenness , and club your pence for that occasion ? Will you do this ; and if you do , who can stand against you ? Enough of that . Now for your sdegradatioB . One tyrant in Ireland can raise from the poorest people in the world thousands iu a week foij a juggle . Are the wives and families of the imprisoned Chartists in this country as independent as you promised to make them ? Why you
scolded them for being behind you in the race for liberty ; you have held up your hands like forests of barked oak in pledge that you would stand by your leaders . Well have you done iti You can best answer . I never do beg for myself ; but fie upon a nation which allows the bravest of her sons to suffer increased torture in their dungeons , upon the heartrending reflection , that they have fought and suffered for those , who will not become fathers to their children !
Enough of that ; and now for the Charter . Do the fools vainly imagine that all the physical force of this nation can impede the nation's will ? Do they vainly hope to fence with a principle , to stab a sentiment , or to shoot down an opinion 1 Do they think that the slaves in this sea-bound dungeon will much longer tamely submit to tyrannic sway and despotic rule , which subjugates the will of millions to the tyrant ' s lust 1 Did I not tell you over and over again that the middle classes would kick against the legislation of their own representatives , eo soon as they received the first squeeze—the taxing press ? Have I not told you that when poverty became too prevalent—that then the burden
of the state should be borne by those who imposed it upon others ? Was I not right in all thisi Aye ! and every squabble among the enfranchised will add power and strength to your cause . Let the Whigs now , with their tattered fragment of a parchment constitution , stand before the rushing streams of knowledge , and say to public opinion , " Thus far shalt tho * go , and no further V Hear , then , my parting advice . Be firm , united , and bold , and the Whigs themselves , with the Devil to back them , cannot much longer impede our progress . Let your motto still be—UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE AND NO SURRENDER ! Let no crotchet-monger for one moment divert you from the great principle , and victory must be your reward .
I am , As I ever have been , Your true and faithful Friend , FEARGUS O'CONNOR . May 9 th , 1840 .
Untitled Article
-On Thursday , the
neighbourhood of Walmer-lane was thrown idto confusion , in consequence of the finding of the body of a young girl named Harriet Wright , in the canal , near Walmer-lane Bridge . The body had no sooner been found and recognised , than suspicion became attached to a young man named Josiah Lilly , with whom she was known to keep company . Information was sent to the station-house , in Stainforth-stroet , and Sergeant Bruff was despatched to the residence of Lilly's mother , in York-street , where he apprehended the youth in bed , at six o ' clock in the morning . An inquest waa held yesterdav before Dr .
Daviesanda Jury , which laBted nine hours . Th « body , on being examined , exhibited no marks of violence . From the account of some of the witnesses , the prisoner and the deceased had been on intimate terms , and much attached to each other . The prisoner is about eighteen years , bore rather an indifferent character , and is an apprentice to a plane manufacturer in Birmingham . A great number of witnesses were examined , and the Jury , at half-past eleven on Friday night , after twenty minutes ' conaultation , returned the following verdict : — " We are agreed that the deceased came by her death by drowning , and record a verdict of wilful murder against the prisoner . "
Untitled Article
anmoBR or lorp wxxuaw ntsnu EXAMINATION OP COURVOISIEB AT BOW ^ STBBBT , At an early hour on Monday morning , it baring been rumoured that Courvoider , the valet of the late Lord William Russell , had been removed from his Lordship ' s house in Norfolk street , to the station-house , in the custody of the officers , preparatory to his undergoing an examination before Mj . Hall , the Chief Magistrate , the entire of the street was blocked up by an immense crowd of people to catch a glimpse of the prisoner on MURDBB OF LOIU > WXUXAW RTJSSXLL ' — -
his being brought from the station-house to the Court , which is acrore the way . The prisoner was brought to the station-house in a hackney-coach between twelve and one this morning . After Mr . Jardioe bad disposed of the night charges Mr . Hall arrived , and had a Short interview with Mr . Wray , the Receiver to the Metropolitan Police Commissioners , ¦ who 'was on the Bench ; but as none of the witnesses had arrived , and no orders had been received from Scotland-yard upon the subject , the prisoner ; was not brought over from the stationhouse untiliihe night charges , which on Monday morning are unusually numerous , were disposed of .
Mr . Hall , after holding a long consultation in the Magistrates' room , with Mr . Fox Maule , and Mr . Hobler , the solicitor for the prosecution , entered the Court at twenty minutes before one o ' clock . Mr . Flower , the solicitor for the prisoner , was also in attendance ; but although he made repeated appli cations to be allowed to see the prisoner at the stationhouse , he was informed that orders had been received from the Police Commissioners , to prevent any person holding communication with him . At half-past one o ' clock the Hon . Captain Byng , the comptroller of the household , came on the bench , together with Lord Montford and other gentlemen .
' At a quarter before two o ' clock , Mr . Hobler banded to the bench the police-sheet , on which the charge against the prisoner Courvoisier was drawn np , and Air . flower having complained that be was -this morn , ing prevented from holding any communication with hia client , which on all other occasions was invariably allowed . Mr . Hall said that unless such a privilege was allowed by a Magistrate , particularly under the circumstances under which the prisoner was charged , it was always the case not to suffer any communication ; but as he did not wish to throw any obstruction in the way , he might return with the prisoner who was during the time fcb . 6 application ^ was making placed at the bar .
Mr . Flower was then directed to accompany the prisoner into a private room , and , after about five or tea minutes delay , they again returned into Court . The prisoner was then placed at the bar ; he waa dressed in a brown frock-coat , and did not appear to be in . the least confused . ^ Mr . Hobler , in a few words , stated the nature of the charge , and proceeded to examine Inspector / Pearce , A division . . / Nicholas Pearce , inspector of police , attended at the house of Lord William Russell on Wednesday morning last I went up to his Lordship's bedroom ; and saw his Lordship ' s body on the bed . He was dead . Hia Lordship ' s establishment , as I was informed , cooaisted of a man servant and two maids . The prisoner was
pointed out * as the man servant I spoke to him , and he told me he was hia Lordship ' s -valet . His Lord-Bhip was lying a little on bis right aide . I examined the body . I turned down the bed clothes , and saw a great quantity of blood . I did not see the wound . There was a cloth over the neck- I saw blood on the side of his face , and a great quantity on the bed , also on the floor under the bed . It had soaked through the mattress . I attended an inquest that evening . I was present when a verdict was given . It was wilful murder against some person or persons unknown . I have since then made search in the house , and have found property belonging to Lord William Russell . I made a search in the butler ' s pantry on Friday . I made a search through the house as well . The prisoner
told me the room I searched was his pantry . I examined the floor , and at the side of the fire-place , by the corner of the seat , where there was a skirting-board round , I saw a small bit of lime or plaster bad been moved , and by tearing away a little I got my three fingers insido the skirting-board , and by a sudden jerk a piece of board about nine inches long and six broad came away as if it had peen previously removed from its position ; it was perfectly sound ; and at that moment I saw this purse ( produced ) inside a piece of skirting that led under the sink , further on . It was about two inches in . There were two constables in the room who saw me . I took it up . It is in the same state as 1 found it I examined it , and found it to contain five gold coins , one wrapped in paper , five gold
rings , one aweddingring . I then saw the Waterloo medal produced , a little further on . I then pulled away the other piece of skirting , and took up the medal and riband produced—the name is on it ; further on I found a £ 10 note , of the Bank of England ; after that , in the same room , I found a watch ring behind a lead water * pipe , which was behind the plate-cupboard . It was about seven feet from the ground , and fifteen feet from where I found the other property . I believe all these things to have been the property of Lerd William Russell . I had heard tie prisoner « ay before that hia Lordship wore tings , and that they -were missing . I communicated to the prisoner I had found them . I went to the room he was in . I laid them on the . table and said , " I have found this property concealed is
your pantry , " and he said , "I know nothing about them . " I said this in the room in which the prisoner was in . I had not then found the ring . I told him I had found them concealed . He said " I know nothing about them ; I am innocent , and conscience clear . " He said , " I never saw the medal before . " Everything was exposed to his view . 1 afterwards brought him down stairs into the pantry , and showed him where the things were found . His answer was , "I know nothing about them ; I am innocent . ** I continued my search in that room , and the prisoner remained while I did so for some time . . The prisoner was not in the room when the split ring was f « aod , nor was it shown to him . Lord William Russell ' s late Talet . saw them , and recognised them as his late master's property .
Mr . Hobler—That is all the evidence I shall at present offer . Mr . Hall asked was there any other property found by the witness ? Mr . Hobler said that other property had been found by other officers , but he would not go into the examination today . Inr " answer to Mr . Flower , the witness said that other persons had had access to the pantry . It was not locked . The prisoner was a foreigner ; he could speak English fairly , and had always declared his innocence up to the present moment Re-examined by Mr . Hobler—I searched the prisoner and found a bunch of keys , about ten , on his person , and in his right trowsers pocket I found a gold locket for hair , and some silver , about 6 s . or 7 s . in the same pocket . I was examining the locket , and he
said" That is mine . " He gave no account of it I searched his box and found nothing ; but in the pantry , in a small box , I found a hammer , a chisel , and a screwdriver . I saw the chisel on the bench , on entering the room , and was examining the door , which had been forced open , and the chisel was handed to me . I then compared it with a mark on the drawer in the plate cupboard , and the mark and chisel corresponded . The screwdriver I found on the bench , and the hammer in the box . The prisoner was not present I mentioned tke circumstance to him . He said the screwdriver belonged to the house , but the chisel was his Witness then produced the chisel and the other implements mentioned . On fitting the screwdriver to marks in the plate cupboard , it fitted them accurately . The marks cf the chisel were on the drawer . At the back door , where there are marks of violence , the screwdriver corresponds with some of them .
In answer to Mr . Flower , the witness said he searched the prisoner on Friday evening . He found the ring on the same day before he searched him . His boxes were searched on Thursday . I found nothing in them . The hammer was found in the tool chest . The property produced was then handed back by the magistrates to the officers . Mr . Hobler applied to hare the prisoner remanded until Thursday . The prisoner remained perfectly composed , and occasionally gave instructions to Mr . Flowers clerk . Mr . Flower said that he bad no objection to the tiuie mentioned by the solicitor for the prosecution , and the prisoner was remanded to two o ' clock on Thursday . Mr . Flower then applied to the Court to be allowed to visit the prisoner , and Mr . Hall consented to give him an order for that purpose whenever it might be requisite . 'He was then remanded in custody , preparatory to being taken to Westminster Bridewell .
Untitled Article
Whig Justick . —The Gazette contains an offer of a reward of £ 200 for the apprehension of the murderer of Mr . Templeman ; and a srimilar reward ( to which £ 200 additional ie promised by the relatives of the deceased ) for the discovery of the murderer . ofLord William Russell . How often are we told lnEngland that the law is the same for the poor as the rich ; that equal justice is rendered to all , whatever the quality of the party might be . The Gazette of Friday contains an instructive illustration of the manner in which the Whig Government exercises its discretion in respect to the impartiality which the Constitution provides for the equal protection of all classes of society . The murder of Mr . Templeman , which was quite as barbarous .
tnougn , perliaps , not quite so remarkable aa that of Lord William Russell , occurred on the 17 th of March . The unfortunate nobleman was slain on Tuesday last . For the purposes of justice , it is obvious that , if the Executive Government must intervene at all with its pecuniary resources , the murder of a simple gentleman—nay , even of a beggar—ought to command its attention as much as the slaughter of a nobleman . Now , it so happens , that though six weeks have elapsed since the butchery of Mr . Templeman , Government had not thought proper to take the least notice of it ; and , we have no hesitation in saying , would not now , had not the late uufortunate deceased been a nobleman , and the uncle of one of its members , and no reward . would ever have been offered . —Courier .
Itarieteefj* Itarietkg *
ITarieteefj * ITarietkg *
Murder At Birmingham.—
Murder at Birmingham . —
Untitled Article
I . 6 THE NORT 18 BN 8 TAR . / lif I .
-
-
Citation
-
Northern Star (1837-1852), May 16, 1840, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/king-y1kbzq92ze2684/page/6/
-