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THE DUNGEON MIRROR
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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g ^ J ^^ ' — ' - ~ J ( Continued from our sixth page . J 1 Twhave . y ? lat state were they in ? Quite vet TFaethey not as wet as-ihough they had been soaked ^ water ? Uisy were . gjre you seen my stock in the same ^ condition more gpgoBce ? I hsTe , and seen yon , till the fire was lighted , walkygg about the yard with , your stock in your hand , trying fc diyit Ab 4 when the fire was lighted , has it not smoked as g jt bad been fresh from a 'rash-bib ? jnst the same . ' - ( Continued from our sixth page . J T » n * ve . .
Have I more than onee complained to yon that 1 jjoted exercise , but was compelled to fly from the jjjuiid stench of a privy without a door , and three ^ Bking sinks in the yard , especially in calm weather , ^ 4 ^ jo ^ rhen the wind is in certain quarters ? Youhave , and I hare felt the same myBelf . I font now ask yon for your medical opinion , but , ffoa yonr eye-sight and discernment , canyon take upon -oorself to say whether I am better or worse than when I t * s first sent here ? Any one can see that you are very much worse , and apparently weaker in health , though better in your
After the night that yon hare said yon last took np | 2 » chamber-pot , were you able to discover , from the appearance of my cell , that I had been very seriously indisposed during the night ? im Be « ainined by Mr . Hague : — I believe you slept in a similar place , and you dont jjiok worse than when you came here ? > - o , Sir , because I was in the habit of drinking perkips a lisle too much , and you take care that scant affect me here . By Mi- O'Connor : —
I believe , Whitworth , independently of any difference Ja oar usual habits of life previously , yon and J do NOT HXPPKi TO BE HERE FOB PRECISELY THE SAME 07 T BSCE ; your crime is not having published xchai is ailed a political libel ? So , Sir , it is not Here the examination concluded , when I addressed lir . Crawford as follows : — " Sir , you say you are not an jBipeetoz . To me it is of no consequence whether you are of this circuit or not , or whether you be a mere amateur ; hot having heard that Mr . Pox Manle contradicted the KtataTneTit * contained in my p& tfiion , presented by Mr . Sergeant Talfourd to the House of Commons , and as you are now upon the spot with the Governor and Magistrates , and have heard
» part of the evidence , I require that you go into the whole case , and I am now prepared to support , by iwom testimony if necessary , all , and every , the most minute , statements made in my petition . I have to inform yon , Sir , that that petition was engrossed by the Under-Governor , and snbmittted to the Governor , and that the facts therein stated are rtrongly supported by the Governor—he having waited upon me to request that I would add , that I was exempt from , ike menial dstia complained of tckZe in bad health J Now , Sir , if there were anything false in my petition , would the person most interested have allowed it to go fortb with
sadi itroiix ctrnflnaatoiy eTid £ BA ©» Ifeavealso to add , thai Mr- Hague was furnished with a copy of the petition , and he is Chairman of the Tisiting Magistrates Bat , &r , mart tie trick ; my petition , was drawn up < a the 21 st , posted on the 24 th , sees * t the Home Office on the 25 th , setting forth natters as they then good . My petition is held back far a whole week , when a correspondence takes place , and Mr . FoxManle , is the interim , creates new tircmastaoes , varying but trifling from those complained « f , sad then , brings the tady-created Hrenmstawxs to his -md , to DISPROVE TACTS WHICH EXISTED TEH BJ ^ JS PREVIOUSLY
sad , moreover , Sir , I now state thmj ^ u those grimaces of which I the * most complained Iffll continue in full force . And ft is most remarkable , gr , That I was only sent to the kospital upon the very ES&t of the day upon which jay ^ etition was pr * . imte& I cmnplarn , Sir , that I was taken from the lands of sry physician on Monday , the 18 th Hay , and lodged , in bad health , in a cold , damp , stone cell ,-sad that I was obliged to remaJE . there thirteen nighte , to Monday , tbe 1 st of June , notwithstanding-fee strcBfest medical affidavits aad -certificates , as to-fee efed which such treatment woald be likely to hare
* poa my health . I say , Sir , that had it not been for Mr . Atderson , -the surgeon of -this prison , I should hm most probably died . And I bow assert , seat X ? TO this kokest , all remMsion of service , -mad alteration is diet , has proceeded from the meflical gentlemen of the prison , and -not from the Borne Office . I eojopMn tfeai , for * ^ inalsr offence , -man w « never » treated , rasaBed , and abased . I defy any ¦ an to contaadiet what my petiS » n states ; and ? am * ffl suffering vnAa the b « meet portion of -the
grievances therein set forth . I Bve with felons . J see none but fcWna , gaolers , turnkeys , magistaieg , And fte carious , f am allowed neither books 0 * papers ; mdrai allowed "to » ee friends , or -to correepona with them without inspection of my letters . I ha * e no hesfchy place-to-ewreweia . I am accustomed to drink a liffle wine every -day , not much ; 3 * ried it here ,-and was forced to gore it np , as , without exercise , it weold hynreme . I complain that I have no ! had justice done tomein the Boose ef Commons . I <*» np i rYin that my hestfa is daily failing »
Mr . Hague— "T 3 x surgeon is the best jadge « f thatf " Mr . O'Connor— " ^ indeed , no ; you appear to be as though I should teeanably complain . You say I am ietter . The surgeon may see that I 4 o not Iknpio Each ; bet see here , Mr . Inspector ; all ¦^¦ doties , that were too tight , are falling off my back ; while my boots , * bich-srere too toote , < wffl not now elate spot * , ay 1 Bcles . This is patting flesh upon the wreegend . " Mr . Hague— " Mr . O'Connor , hare yoa applied for father medial advice , and has it been refused * -
Mr . O'Connor— " Did each an insinuation ever escape = ypen or lips , or is it in my petition , or in any of my «* en . I defy yon to show even a hint at snch a thing , * Jmytbing but the tenth , —but not the whole truth ret I complam , Mr . Inspector , that that gentleman , « r- Hague , dared to come into my ceU yesterday , and rssTLT KE , when he hme our relative ritvaUoxs , and WHILE MT HAXDS WERE TIED . He told me that 1 »! written what was not the truth . " Mr Hague— - Mr . O'Connor , yon misunderstood me . * hat I memt was , that facts whi . h at one time you l * " > kshed , vere rendered EaaoxEors by subsequent t&aautaaces . ^ ttHUiinaes . "
Mr . O-Connor— " Sir , though late , I thank you for ae ipolsgy , md jc ^ it j ^^ ^ 6 ^ 01 ]^ .. Mi . Koble— " There , Mr . O'Connor ; I told you that Ton misunderstood Mr . Hague . " 3 fc . O'Connor— " Xow , Mr . Inspector , does not Mr . ** Pie ' J own declaration prove my whole case ? I com-P ™ a that I have been , and still am , unfairly and unf-ftisitionaUy treated ; and I will send petitions to tali Houses of Parliament , as long as "Parliament ** ; and , that failing , I will throw myself upon we country . I am new writing a full , a plain , ** » strictly troe account of all to the Editor
"tte riae * . There it is . The whole world will read " ¦ The magistrates shall see it first , ihongh . And * . Sir , havillg partially gone into my ease , I demand * 7 WD bands a fun , a fair , and a complete iftvesUgatUm J »• ¦» trtatnaa / and I am prepared to prove the truth ^» 7 sentence that I have written , and transmitted * - 8 erge * nt Talfoard ; but I have not told the ^ of my case yet Sir , though a prisoner , I am ** £ ** trifled with . " m £ * Inspector left without attending to my request , jj- ^ aot an Inspector " Mr . Hague was conductrS ^ mvestigationr
* k following is s certificate from each of my fellow ™^ to the truth of the acts above detailed . It a t ** a > m yon will perceiTe , by one ef the piisoners . " ^^ arei , on this folio of the MSS .: — KTp ^ Inl ^*^ ' ** * o * our own examination before * e ? £ ** x ***¦ Magistrates , and both for what took Ij ^^ reen l £ r . O-Coanor and the Inspector and e ^^ ee . that we hare twice read over the matter iTa « r £ m a ««« aixjndence mteaded far pabficattoa r * kedi S ? ^ ! T * pllper ' coo » i » ttng of niae folioe , Kveirdri ' aad to each of which folioa wbt * Pfim S * jV ^ ttfal * , and subscribe our names tath ^ L ?*^ 6011 **" * ^^ "W " eorrespond-PifieqSdf ' ^^ " ** * " ieSdy * ° TBrif 7 npoi I William White , I &a 2 \ p « j ^ Bdwaed Whitwoeth . ^ T&LIIS * -
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Parliament All my statement * an coatr » dictad . I do not hear » single wwd , otherwi ^ th . a accidentally Sergeant T « foard does not so nmebrw write a Bne for explanation . Enquiry is promised ; and On the day but one following , an Inspector cornea to York Castle . He examinesthe officers and my fellow praonew , whose tertjmony is taken down in writing , in the presence of the Chairman , a Visiting Magistrate , and the Governor The examinations strictly priTate , the witnessefl not being admitted togetaw , mi not taken in the presence of fte- accused . The witnessesare cautioned to speak the truth ^— - - -f ^ n , ,, | . ., ynjL 1 donotaeai » . ri , « u- ^ a ^ v—_ ,.. i " ™**** - I
, but are not told to tell the whole troth . On the same evening I discover tbe inquisitorial proceeding Imstantly write to the Chairman , requiring a full investigation . On the following day , the Inspector is no t an Inspector ! 1 And yet he proceed , tofte « h £ m in * tto * of witaea , Mr . Hagueoond ^ ting tht uncsti «« . Now , Sir , is this Mr . Crawford an Inspector Tr i « he not ? ifKele , wht eefcsb to in ^ St ^ Ite THE WHOLE CASE PAIBLT ? Jf ^^ Z * HE HEM AI ^^ l «« «« wer the ^ ion most satisfactorily : he was a picked Inspector selected for the job .
Now , Sir , is this a •¦ base , brutal , and bloody Inqnl . Mtion , or is it not ? s ^ SiSr " ^ ^ - ** > At neariy seven o ' clock I was called into the yard by Mr . Hague , who was accompanied by Mr . Caytey and the Governor . Here follows the conversation — Mr . Hague- " Mr . O'Connor , we have heard fromthe
Secretary of State , and you are to be allowed books , newspapers , and to have your co mmunic ations as usuaL You may have your dinner from an inn . i » sorry to find your cough W r * e to-night . Youwe to be visited by your friends at all reasonable tunes ; to be locked up at nine instead of seven ; to shave yourself . I am a shareholder in the library if you mention what books you wish to haye , Mr . Noble shall get them in my name . "
Mr . O'Connor- " I thank you , Sir . Pray look at these letters—as you stopped one yesterday—ana say are they passable ? One is to M ,. SUpleton , a magistrate ft . ether to Mr . Pitkethly , and the third to Mr . Sergeant Talfourd , through the Times newspaper » Mr . Hague-- Well , but stop ; we have not done ; you an * ot to write any thing for publication in any paper " Mr . O'Connor— " What , not the truth 7 " Mr . Hague— " No , not ant thing . " Mr . O'Connor— '' Well , but if I submit it to tbe Magistrates , and they approve of it , and it is respectful ?
Mr . Hague— " No : those are our instructions , and if you send anything out by any of your friends , you will not be allowed to see any more . " Mr . Noble— » Or impress anything upon their memory , with a view to ita publication . » Mr . O'Connor— " Well , bat hear this letter to the Time * , " I read as follows ;—" TO THE EDITOa OP THE TIMES . •* Sib , —May I request insertion of the enclosed letter " -U Mr . Sergeant Talfourd , at your earliest convenience "I « b , Sir , " Your obedient servant , " Feabgcs O'Connor . " "' York Castle , June 6 th . "
- Can that go ; surely tfcat is innocent enough ? Mr . Hague— " No . The instructions are positive ?" Mr . O'Connor— " lf « y / vcriU to say tme 1 am *~ Mr . Ha ^ ae— " NO . not if it it to be published „• and should anything be taken out by your friends and published , they will be stopped . " Mr . O'Connor— " W « U , this is a pretty sitaatioa . Of course , I may petiiiaa Parliament ?" Mr . Noble— " T * 8 , if it is respectfully wortteO . "
Mr . O'Connor— *¦ I « nderstand ttiat one of your rules is , that nothing sfaaQ go out of this prison which ia anyway reflects upea Government ; asd how can ! make my case ksowa without reflecting upon a Goverament that treats me ti » s— the rascally Government V Mr . Hagua— " Yoar companions are to be removed . " Mr . O'Connor— " Good God > kill me a ! wee soojjek THAN PUT MS I * K > SOLITARY C «> FINEMEST ! What ! shut up here for twelve hours ! What can all this mean ?" Mr . Hague— - ' Ohi joull have your bocks and papers , and your birds to foed : they'll all amuse you . " Mr . O'Connor— " What ! SOLITARY confinejlbsx FOR EIGHTBEJi JffiXrHS ? "
Mr . Hague— " Those are the instructi » as ; so you see , Mr . O'Connor , notwithstanding the tift we bad the other day , we bav « -done all we could fee you ; and I hope the snuff 2 * e * t you last night was pleasant . " Ml . O'Connof— " I thjinV you . As tax aa tfie magistrates are concerned , 2 feel obliged to than . " Here the conversation ended . I was taken to my cell at seven , and introduced to my place at privilege from that hour till sine , which consists of a walk up and down forty-seven stone stairs , and through the felons' mess-room—a passage about four asd a-half feet wide . Soon after Beym , some newspapers were handed
to me , when tbe first thing that caught my eye was the two letters of Mr . Hague to the Secretary of State , which were read by Mr . Fox Maule as a contradiction to my statements . H « re , Sir , the whole secret was disdeeed ; and I could now discover why the denial of publication was as gratefal to Mr . Hague as it was necessary for Lord Xormaaby ! As I intend , in my second letter , to comment npon those letters , I shall only say , for the prestal , ihai , with the exception of the . announcement that I arrived at York Castle on tbe 19 th May , every single other word in both letters is false as false can be . When I read those letters , I was literally paralyzed . I walked for seven hours up and down- my cell , and thus mused within myself ' I am
now worse than dead . ' I am to be burie-. l alive , in a etone coffin ; at the mercy of every one who pleases to insult me ! I am a cock shot for the Whigs and for the press . . I have been sent here for a misdemeanour , and I shall go out branded with every descri ption of infamy which malice can suggest , and ingenuity can circulate ! Whafs . the alternative : break the bloody edict , and pine in solitude , for seventeen months ; or daily receive in silence , and tamely bear , the world ' s insult ? They have done this to wound me still more : to administer the poison , and withhold the antitode . Wnat ! " not publish the truth in mosl respectful language v See my friends cautiously withhold the passing news , lest they shonld wound my feelings ? What friend will
wait upon a bar ? What heart will feel for his sufferingl I can bear death , but not dishonour . I ' BHEAK THE BLOOD ? EDICT , AND WELCOME SOLITUDE . They may take their birds , their books , their papers , their diet , and their bed ; BUT o > LT WITH MY LIFE SHALL THE ? ASSAIL MY HONOUB . " Sir , —You will say , why all this precaution against publication , with so great a power as e * offido places in the hands of such an Attorney-General , under such
a Government , with such a feeling in the class of jurors , and when eighteen months of imprisonment may follow in the Queen ' s Bench prison , in such quick sneeeesion ? There must be something more than yet has met the public eye . THERE IS , SIR . I knou > a SECRET since JtHf . 1835 . It is THAT SECBET . no / me , which PRUDENCE thcs entombs , till ruined fame and slander , after eighteen months' abuse , shall toy , "Oh > who uxnMbelieve the liar 1 "
Shy THAT SECRET , togetheb with anotheb LETTER , HAS PASSED THE PBISON " S CONFINES , AND I AM FREE ; far in them breathes my soul , and lies the solving of oppression . After this , I have only to desire that , should I die in prison , my body may be opened in . presence of Anthony Todd Thomson , M . D ., Mr . Jagoe , surgeon , of Hammersmith , and Mr . James Leonard , surgeon , of No . 18 , Craven-street , Strand , London .
Sir , if a prisoner is to have any choice , give m my cell—my cold , damp ceD ^ -the prison dress , and prison fare , with prison duties to perform , rather than tbe " meet indvloaux " which I now enjoy . The < a » will do the business quickly ; the other only waetingly . Sir , I trust that some one will ask sow and then whether I am dead or alive . And now farewell , world —for seventeen months , pakeweli , ; bat , by Heavto , 111 make a storm in you . I have the honour to be , Your obedient servant , FEARGUS O'CONNOR .
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TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE MARQUIS OF NORMANBY , HER MAJESTY'S SECRETARY FOR THE HOME DEPARTMENT . Mt Lord , —I was willing to have borne mnch , and did bear much , rather than consign to hrfiimy a man whom I thought anxious to serve my country ; but
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there is a point beyond w hich human endurance cannot bear , and yon have poshed my powers to that extreme . My Lord , if your character had been spotlesi , if your motives had never been suspected , you might have persecuted me without being doubted in purpose . Your very tyranny -would have been placed to the account Of ever anxiety to discharge an imperatiTe duty . Yoa would have come Into court with clean handa ; but , my Lord , a rusty instrument inflicts a festering wound . You have not treated me illegally , maligned me grossly , and ¦ wounded me deeply , in consequence of any offence that I have committed , nor yet for justice' sake . Yon have done so because of the knowledge which yon know me to possess of great and mighty offences which yon have committed . U-. L - „ ¦ ¦ Kiere u a point beyond which human endurance
MyLord , were you so foolish as to suppose that I would tamely bear THE LIE which you and your scullion Fox Maule , attempt to give me—the one in the Lords , and the other 5 u the Common *—without any and every stretch to gain satisfaction ? Did yon suppose that because I appeared to bear tamely your attack up on my l ife , I would endure , with equal forbearance , the assault npon my honour ? We shall meet again , my Lord , to settle that point ; for the present , I deal with the immediate subject to which I mean to direct the public attention . I imagine that your Lerdship will find no difficulty in anticipating the subjeet to which I allude . You know the old proverb— " A guilty conscience needs no accuser . "
My Lord , when my case is concluded , you will have been fully impressed with the truth of the adage , " that those who live in glass houses should not throw stones .- Were you so foolish as to imagine that the dullest intellect would not perceive something more than ordinary in the anxiety which your letters to the Visiting Magistrates evince , respecting the muffliDg of my hands , and toe gagging of my tongue » Vain , ignorant puppy ! Did you suppose that you had met with an Irish place-hunter , or a willing slave , or one who would submit'to insult for a relaxation of prison rules ? No : you coxcomb ! though in my dungeon , I will worst you in the contest , and prove to the world who the real offender is .
I could not g * to my subject without thus early giving vent to some of the contempt which I feel for you . In my concluding letter I have proved as follows : —That you entered into a disgraceful correspondence with a reporter of mine , in which you offered to bribe him as a spy and informer ; that you supplied money without the consent or knowledge of the Government or the Attorney-General , to carry on a criminal prosecution against me ; that you conferred with the Judges as to the propriety of sending me to York Castle ; that you knowingly wrote , dictated , and told falsehoods , to excalpate yourself from the
charges which I brought against you ; that you ordered me to be remrwai from the Qneeu ' a Beach i ' rison in thirteen hours » nd a half after you had received the last of a series of the strongest medical affidavits and cerUacales , fully establishing that such removal would be attended with great risk and * mger to my life ; that you treated me illegally , according to the opinion of your « - » n law officers , and that yeu attempted to attach tbe odium , first to the Magistrates , then to the Marshal-of the Queen's Bench —« uy where off your own overburdened shoulders ; thatyouknewyou told * gross , a wilful , sod a palpable falsehood im . reply to Lord Brougham ' s-observations upon presentation of my
petition to the House of Lords . —These , my Lord , in the present days of persecution , are charges , the proof whereof would feert enhance your vatee ia « be eyes of the plundering pertion of the community , who would , in consequence thereof , look upon you -as an able Coadjutor in the * ro » k of national destruction ; but , my Lord , great sinners have great need of muck piety , and your strongest and most depraved supporters will profess much liorror and astonUhmeat , when I conclude by informing them and you that my least charge against you is for an act , disrepetable as a man , disgraceful as a Peer , dishonourable as a Iriend , and treasonable at a Viceroy !!
My Lord , I reminded you of tbe sad blunder which yon had committed in my letters to Mr . O'Connell , published in 1830 . And you will be astonished at the complete , the direct , the unshakeable testimony , upon which I shall ^ rove that you sold your King ' s trust under your hand oad seal , as his Viceroy . I will prove to whom yw » entrusted the teepSjf of the document , the contents of the document , and the teraa upon which y « u were allowed to assume the Viceregal Government of Ireland . My Lord , I shall give yon qaite enough of my case to speak tor itself , while I am handcuffed ; and if , by you * diaaetions , the Magistrates of Yorkshire will condescend to impose fresh restrietiuaa , I shall fall * ack upon my never failing friends , the poorest of the poor , who will not allow them or you to oppress me , now that they know what I suffer .
And , my Lard , let the worst come te the worst ; give me jikilly with satisfaction , in preference to luxury with an accusing conscience . I regret that I cannot im those courteous terms which one gentleman generally does when writing to another . I must , therefore , my Lord , conclude by subscribing myself , as one who regards you with a mixture of pity and contempt , FEARGU 3 O'CONNOR .
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TO THE MAGISTRATES OF THE COUNTY OF
YORK . Mr Lords and Gentlemen , —I am a prisoner , in solitary confinement , at the felons' side of York Castle , in the eighth year of what is called reform , for being the proprietor of a newspaper , in which matter , called " seditious libel" was inserted , without my knowledge . I set forth the treatment to which , as a misdemeanant , I had been subjeoted , in a petition to the House of Commons . Upon hearing my petition her Majesty ' s Attorney-General declared , in bis place in Parliament , that if my statement was correct , I had
been illegally treated . But , to prevent me from proving the facts stated , Lord Normanby flatly contradicted all my allegations , and then issued an order to preclude me from entering npon my defence through the only medium at my disposal—thus cramming the lie down my throat before the public , and compelling me silently to Submit to it , and so lead finch as might be ignorant of the facts to believe it merited . Mr . Fox Maule , in the House of Commons , also dared te charge me with falsehood , when my hands were tied .
My Lords and Gentlemen , I trust you feel with me , that honour should be more dear than life ; and that the man can have little regard for honour , who can wilfully attach his signature to a false statement , with a view of bettering his condition in prison . Under these circumstances , I had no alternative but patiently to watch the first opportunity of setting myself right with the public That opportunity has now presented itself by the release from prison of ona of the prisoners whohas been my companion , and who succeeded in conveying out for me a large bundle of documents containing the whole of the facts relative to my imprisonment , of which matter this letter formed a part ; and , my Lords and Gentlemen , let tbe man who would not have done the same for the same purpose , of defending his honour , cry " Shame 1 "
I beg it to be distinctly understood that notwithstanding Lord Normanby ' s attempt to . saddle—first , tha Visiting Magistratea , and subsequently , the Marshal of the Queen ' s Bench , with the infamy of his own conduct , I owe a deep debt of gratitude to the , body of the Visiting Magistrates generally , I mean those ' I saw , Sir John Lister Kaye , Mr . Tweedy , and Mr . Dar . ryle . Those gentlemen behaved to me with a kindness ] a courtesy , and demeanour , which I never shall for get ; and had it not been for the publication of false testimony , as ar justification of the " Visiting Magistrates , by order of , and with the consent Of Mt Hague , the Chairman , I could well understand , from the examination before Mr
Inspector Crawfbrd , on the 9 th June , that his , Mr . Hague ' s ) previous correspondence with the Secretary of State , had been written in ignorance of the &ets , founded npon statements from turnkeys , whom he was justified in believing . But , my Lords and Gentlemen , the publication of the "justification ? of the Visiting Magistrates , caused a relapse into my former mbgiTiog . Nevertheless , it is difficult to suppose , that a gentleman , who through the whole of life has maintained the highest character for strictness of principle , integrity , and unflinching honesty , could lend himself to so pitiful a subterfuge , as the publication of false and retracted testimony , to injure one against whom he could not possibly have entertained malice , and one whom he ha < I appeared most anxious to serve .
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I hate no hesitation in saying that had I been subjected to the tender mercies of e * offido " Guardians , " to «* ead of English Gentlemen , I should now , by the treatment whkh I wou ] U have received from Lord Normanbr , have been in my grave . I thank God that Lord John Russell ' s inoculation of swine pox , has not wached York Castle . It has not as yet been vaccinated . 1 must also in justice say , that I neTer met with ao good , ao strict , and yet so respectable a set of persons as thote who fill the several offices . The Governor ia a gentleman in every sense of the word , I trust the fact will not Injure him with the Noble Lord , for whose « rvice gentlemen are not most suitable . I would rather be in York Castle , than in any Workheuse in England , both for food and treatment I have no k «« t *««* i- -. •» tl _ « .. x i ... , t v .. _ _ v
My Lords and Gentlemen , in the course of my defence it will become my painfu l duty to charge one of your order with a direct act of what I call treason against his Sovereign ; but , if you shall be of opinion that the times require a stretch of noble conscience , I am ready to give it a milder name . I shall state the facts ; you shall give them a designation . I cannot conclude without taking the earliest opportunity « f returning my most sincere thanks to the Rev-William Him ., Editor of the Xortfiern Star , for the
just , tbe bold , and manly tone which he has assumed , upon the mere presumption of my innocence ; as , being cut off from all communication , I could not furnish any grounds for defence . 1 regret that I was not at liberty to give him an opportunity of making a distinction between the magistrates ; but the "justification '' and the " correspondence" appearing as the act of all , he could not distinguish between the meritorious and culpable , and therefore to ok the only straightforward course which was open to him .
If the Noble Marquis shall be worsted in this conflict , he baa to blame his own temerity , and not my rasin ** . r ~ -- - ' v My Lords and Gentlemgn , bear in mind that I HAVE HAD THE LIE GIVEN TO ME both by Lord Normanby and Mr . Fox Maule , and ask yourselves , as gentlemen , how you would torte acted under pimiia * circumstances .
I have tbe honour to be , Your obedient servant ,
FEARGUS O'CONNOR . Hospital , York Castle , July 2 nd , 1840 .
The Dungeon Mirror
THE DUNGEON MIRROR
" To the men with blistered handsfunshorn chins , and fustian jackets—you , who spend your youth in rattle boxes , and your manhood in bastiles ; to you , and to you only , I address myself' * My dear Friends , —My voice has burst the dungeon walla ; once move you shall hear it . I begin where I left off , with Universal Suffrage and no surrender . Lord Normanby aimed a dagger at my heart , and having failed to murder me , he then assailed my honour j but eight years honest service in your cause raised round that a rampart capable of standing all assaults , for more than an eighteen months' siega Yes , he assailed me ; but in mydungeom I was consoled by reading the defence of your order . You are the only order for which I ever have contended , or for which I
ever shall contend- I am now , « nd am to be for sixteen months , in solitary confinement—aye , by heaven , in Yerkshire , in England , in the eighth year of Whig reform , in solitary confinement £ er publishing the truth . Thank God , I am here . If my being here will eoaviaca even on « , who before doubted me , I hail the martyrdom . Martyrdom , did I say , His glory . My treatment will do more for the holy cause of democracy than if I had been -at huge , and preaching for double the time . O ! what a great deal 1 have i * say to you . You will read all my letters—all my prose and poetry . I sand out a batch . You will believe every word I bare written , tboogh ? hipps had the Insolence to contradict my statement , when he thought himself safe for eighteen months , and Fox Maule also ; but I leave him for the presest to the Scotch Laddiea . When he goes once more to solicit their sweet voices , some one will surely
plump it in his jaw . I beg pardon for bestowing bo much time > ea the unlicked cubs . You are to have a delegate meeting at Manchester . From my prison I ask very iown in England , Scotland , aad Wales , to send * delegate , either separately or jointly , to that meetUtg . ^ Glasgow will send honest James Moic Edinburgh has hundreds as . good ; so indeed has Glasgow 1 but I name him to show that the ashes of the old Convectioa are but raked , not extinguished . Kilmarnock , CuMnock , Millbridge , Ayr , and Irvin will join for Ayrshire , Aberdeen , Dundee , Duufermline . Greenock , and Palalty , will surely . cross the border : ' wheit at Liverpool ? £ b £ y are within one hour ' s journey of the spot Myethyr Tydvil , Newport , alas ; poor Newport ! Bath , Bristol , Birmingham , Newcastle , Carlisle , SunderUutd , . and all the other towns , though they beg the means , will thus revive the Charter . Never mind
. London . H « ver baa . been , and ever will be , rotten . The men of Jtonr £ * der are sound ; but all i » done by fellows in pay of the Whigs , and the best exertions of the poor workey'e ave frustrated in committee . But fur those scamps , I would have had Frost , Williams , and Jones at home now . If Mis . Frost and her daughters had been allowed to come to London , we would have had . 500 , 000 people to eseert them to Whitehall . I offered to go for them , at my own expense , and to pay for the whole procession , ; music and all ; but , no , they could not bear tbe notion fallowing the fustians to See what they conld do for . themselves . They said , "Let Mrs . Frost go to the Queen herself i " She might as well nil her mouth full of cold water , and hold her back to the fire till it boiled —and they knew it If there was a large sum to be divided , we should have an abundance of patriotism . Don't mind London—you can do without it —London lives upon you . Those fellows are like the lice that live upon the beetle : and the -beetle might as
well expect that the lice would abandon him for asking aa yon may expect that the vermin which live upon you will either abandon you or allow you to shake them off Those fellows ha to me as they hate the devil ; because they know that , but for me , they could take you neck and crop to the Downing-street market . I never held out any hope to you of a sincere junction with any party ; but I have always told you that a firm union amongst yourselves would beat all the other parties united . Before I was here , and at the breaking up of tho Convention , those fellows , with Whittle , the Cobbetts , and the rotten end of tha country party , entered into a conspiracy to destroy the Star—Burns was one of them ; and I find he has been trying to do what bi » poor capacity would admit of—but I tell them all , with their flummery tonguea and their iron hearts , that they may blow their leathern lungs till they crack again , but they never will blow the recollection of Feargus O'Connor out of the heart , the mind , the soul of a working man .
I have laughed at the side wipes to put down the Star , in the demand for a National Press . You never shall have a National Press if I can hulp it , Now that you can klsa France , and shako bands with America—now ( that steam has annihilated apace , your grievances , which were formerly but local , but which Lave been some time national , will henceforth be universal , and so long as I live you shall have an universal presa Not a pre 33 for England , for Ireland , or for Scotland ; not an imperial , butaUKivuasALpress . The condition of the working classes will shortly , like water , find its level in every country in Europe . The
manufacturers are trying to effect it now by a repeal of the Corn-LaW 8 . A free-trade , with unrestricted machinery , must inevitably first ruin the working classes of the most heavily taxed , of those nations who freely barter for the working man ' s labour . Therefore , establish despotism in France , and it would more closely affect you now , nationally ^ than « despotism In' Yorkshire , fifty years ago , would at that period have affected Leicestershire . For these reasons you Bh&ll have an universal presa . —a press which will go to the root of tha « vil , and not a bit of court plaster that will cover the sore .
Is not the Star an universal press ? Has it not ever been an universal press ? Have you not forty-five columns weekly , to yourselves , of yourselves , and for yourselves ? Would all the gold in the Indies ; would my liberty , or salvation of my life , purchase a line adverse-to your interests in the Star ? Did I not give up nine columns of advertisements , and refuse to advertise , betause I thought your cause required the whole spare ? Has it not been a a preparatory school for the working classes ? la n * b every letter from them a good Leading Article t the best ever printed in any paper in this ot in auy ^ other country , . speaking common eenae in plain' language , coming from your own hearts . What were y 6 u in November , 1887 ? What are you now ? Is riot every
paper full of your cause , all forced by the Star ? la not . every-prison full Of your leaders , and are you riot at large , and has not that been done 'fey ttie Star ' s ' bringing those noble fellows into the Held , and into tbe front ot battle , instead of , as formerly , forcing Jotf on to flghfc-srbiJe WbJga and Tories criett " bravo" at your back ? Am I not in seUtatjr confinement , and for tha'Star ; and what the devil do they Want ? Tahould not repine if 5 , 000 men , who " eouhf'afford imprisonment , were all looked up for the Charter . Surely we never expected that-tbe fortress , so long holden , and so powerfully garrisoned , would surrender at the Snrt attack I ¦ No , faith ! we have undermined it . and
shaken it , and , with the blessing of God , will t > low it to atoms . Just see the manner in which some of those fellows behaved both to you and to me . Oh , they say , Feargus promised you this and that , and the other thing ; where is it ? They might ' nave more truly said Feargus promised you so and so , [ but tee took very good cam that he shouldn't accomplish-it . I say now , as I have said , and ever shall say , that if Muntz and the Birmingham traitors ^ Whittle and the Cobbettites , Craig and the Craigites , Halley and the Halleyites , and many others , whom I need not mention , had remained true as I did , that we should have nad every thing I promised . l ¦
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Now , observe , the fallacy of a joint stock paper . Suppose it lathe property of two . They " pull devil , pull baker" , and the people go to the wall . Suppose it is managed by three ; you . have just the number for dissension ; and , as you multiply proprietors , so do you multiply crotchet * . One will cry . " down with the Church" ; another " Household Suffrage" ; another " moral movement "; another " physical movement "; another " education "; another " repeal of ^ the Com Laws " , and there would he no responsibility any where ; no great risk either . The profit too much for one , and too little for all . Advertisements at length are sought for , and then Radicalism is not a paying commodity , so they take their scrip to tho next best market . _ _ , ___ ^ . _ .. .
The Charter was established as a national paper , and in the Metropolis—the profits to be divided amongst the shareholders ; and how did that turn out ? Ihavealwajs had , and always shall have , so long as I am concerned with the Star , undivided possession , and individual responsibility . You have now had 6 , 084 columns in the Star . Show me , in all , one sentence opposed to your interests . Show me another proprietor in Europe who can say that in thirty-two months of such times as I have lived In , he has never spoken a harsh word , or had one single dispute , or contradiction with any man in hta employment I can say it What ! are they not satisfied that I have
lest my liberty , and that my health has been ruined ? l > o they also want to ruin the only organ that has cvor successfully withstood oppression , and defended their rights in this country ? Why , while \ hose " national guards" are thrusting at the giant , I am marvelling how it has lived so long , and triumphed over all opponents . Lose the Star , and then replace it who can ? It shall live while I live ; and then it will become a matter of history , and of wonder to future generations . There never was , there never will be , so truly a Democratic Journal as the Northern Star . It has made brothers and sisters of every working man and woman in the empire .
Now , my friends , there is one one fact which you must never lose sight of . During three years that I served in the House of Commons , I had no Star , and I was Radical then , as now . From the 2 nd July , 1835 , to November ; 1837 , 1 had n « Star , and I travelled during that period , ai my own expense , twice as much as since I established the Star . 1 was Radical then , as now . I never would have started that , or any other paper , but I found that I could not get a line of our meetings into a single journal ; and , therefore , my money , my time , and health , wave gc&ag tor nothing . I then established the paper , and you have seen its progress , and have felt its effVcts . You will pardon me for thus enlarging on the subject ; but when I tell you that a Cabinet Minister declared that one million of money would be profitably spent in suppressing the Star , you will neither wonder at my anxiety , nor at the machinery which so large a sum can put in motion . But I promise you to beat the million , and to blow the infernal machine up .
Has not the Star at all times cheered on , advertised , and assisted every local Radical journal , looking to them as a means for marshalling the Radical opinion in their several localities ; as brigades , in fact , of the fe » -and army . Well , can a local paper be sufficiently national ? I say not Can a national paper be sufficiently local ? Again , I answer not ; and for this plain and simple reason . No local paper can live except by advertisements , and no Radical paper will get advertisements . Hence the community looks upen a Whig-Radical article in a local papor as a great God-send , and as a greater stretch than if I was hung for recommending treason in the Star ; and hence , again , you have not
one local Radical paper in the empire , and you never will , till you get Universal Suffrage , aui then you wou't want them . Does any one know the risk , the expense , and trouble attendant upon establishing aad conducting a newspaper , where forty-efgut columns of print has to be selected from about 400 columns of matter , and every one to please , every one asking why his was omitted . Has a&y periodical ever experienced tbe difficulty of managing about seven hundred news agents ? I will give you a sample . An agent once ran < £ 34 in debt ; and upon his account being rendered , and afteT some applications for the amount , I received a letter to the following pnrport : —
** Sir , —Poor —'¦ has done all in his power to push the Star , but has been very unfortunate ; and we , Hie shareholders , request that you will give him time , aad continue him in the agency . "Yonra , &c " P . S . —You are aware that the dividends upon the shares will be due on the 14 M& . " Now , suppose I had replied— " I have lost much in pushing the Star , and I request that the shareholders will not push use . " How thankless an office to endeavour to please all parties ! My object in starting
the Star has "been mainly achieved . That object was to keep one only question for ever and ever before the public—^ the question of Universal Suffrage . It has exposed abuses , consequent upon the want of the Suffrage , and it baa explained what its accomplishment would effect ; and , above all , it has knocked all crotchet-mongers and sectional-mangers on the bead . I have , through it , proved to you , th .-it you could not , by your united strength , have one turnkey dismissed from Yorli Castie , . while , by a . union and proper direction of all your energies , you could command the destinies of the empire .
Perhaps you will be astonished by ray second letter , for which the present week ' s Star cannot afford room , and which will therefore appear next week , in which from niy dungeon I navo prepared my plan , not only for agitating , but for carrying the Chartw , without the Cost Of one penny to the nation , and all by the press . Do not suppose that eighteen months , nor yet eighteen years in prison , will weed the Charter from my haart . I am doomed to have that Charter , or to Io 3 e my life in tbe attempt . When I reflect upon the last eight years of my life , now that I have leisure , I can assert , without fear of contradiction , without going over the ground again , that no man has ever—I won't except any mortalworked so hard , and steered so straightforward a course .
And now , my friends , I tell you that the press , and tho press alone , ia the lever by which that change which I seek , and which you kquire , can be accomplished , and which must elevate the working classes to their natural dignity . Machinary , according to its present application and abuse , is mrin ' s greatest enemy . Its possession hardens the heart of the owner , and almost imperceptibly makes him look upon man , firstly as a subordinate pk-co of machinery , and th « n . when not further needed , he ia handed over , as uaeleas lumber , to be dealt with 03 surplus population by the tender hearts of political economists . Those proprietors form a largo portion , or , at least , command that portion of the community who advertise in the local press , and consequently the interest of the proprietors of the press is to support the system which supports them . Had I turned round , and cunningly wheeled the , Star , by easy stages , to the aid of the Corn Law Repealers , I c » uld have Bunk
the name and honour of the , 'Star , " and made the "Leeds General Advertiser" the best feather in the wing . I tell you , as I have told you before , an advertising paper must be a profligate paper . That an universal paper must be individual property , and carry with it individual responsibility . My object in looking for Universal Suffrage 18 to get ten million acres of land for a fair rent , whereon to locate the population rendered surplus by triachinery . Those who say "We know nout about laud ! " are foola . I don't trout them all to have land : but tha removal of those who do want it , who know the blessing , and know how to appreciate it , will render the labour of those who know nout about it of far more value in their own market , and will enable them to command the master , instead of bsing commanded by him . This must be done by the press . Even five minions of acres would take seven millions from beggary to affluence , and leave their fellows in a better position , wblo thty would never know a day's want
The plainness of my plans may render them unpalatable to the metaphysical and theoretical ; but I ask whether it ia not tuore consonant with . the laws of nature and reason , to cultivate what ia under your nose for yourself , than to ask thQ ; foreigner to cultivate his land for your advantage , or rather for his own . The principles of our Government have become so scientific as almost to make man forget that he lives upon the produce of the soil , or what the soil is capable of producing ; . I am a beef-and-mutton—a pork and butter and bread and milk and honey Radical ; I am an open-air , a work-when-I'm-able-and-work-fpr-myself-and-my-family Radical . I wish , if I get wet , to have the satisfaction to know that my crops get wet also , and are
served by it If lam sick , I wish to lay me down in my own house ; and when I am recovering , I wish to measure my strength myself , instead of laving it measured bjr the necessity of working when weak and unable . ' These things never " can tjeaccomplished but Tby the press . As to makirig any' terms between the owners of mill ; property an « the workers of that property , except by Universal Buffragft , I defy you . It ia out ofthe nature-of things '; and / -knowing this , you may as well cock a loaded pistol to their heads , as fire a volley of the Suffrage at them . " But , observe , if you allow the young spawn to grow np , and find the
system as it is > and allow then ! to be'schooled in the licensed academies of traffic , they will look upon you as '' hereditary bondsmen . " They will never have known other than the system ' in which they have been educated , and will tton&ider its continuance as part and parcel of national faith . In fact , In les * than ten years , they , like the fundlorda and landlords , will say , * Oh ! my father built these premises upon national faith ! " that is , " That labour never" should be represented—that man should always be my slave . " I tell you that the man who saya , " Unite with the middle classes , " is either a rogue or a fool , or most likely
both" As well may , the lamb with the tiger unite , The mouse with tbe cat , or the lark with the kite . " Wash a blackamoor white ; shew him to me ' , and then , butnot till then , will 1 say , " Unite with , the middle classes ! " You cannot doit They'll do as they did before with you In 1832 . They'll march with you to Corn Law repeal cross ,, and then theyll say , "Oh , good nightj Mr . Radical ; I can go home by myself 1 " Poverty may compel some to unite , but the union will only make them more poor . You see I speak a frightful troth ; but I will not be a party to year union by patting my band to falsehood .
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I have written twelve letters ia alL I shall be tried again next week at Liverpool . Well , thia l etter wont go far to ensure me a safe deliverance from the hand * of a Jury of plunderers . I am already found guilty # ? w ° ; J ?*; 1 don > t *»» for that That will bo my fourth trial in less than twelvemonths .- Have I turned apins point before Attorney-General , Court of Queen ' s Bench , or Judge and Jury ? No , and with God * Dlessing . the pride of conscience , the love « f man ana devotion to my holy cause of Chartism , will inspire me , though poorly ,-to soar above my former efforts , and enable me , though led captive from the felon ' s dungeon , to give corruption ' s heart its final stab at Liver pooL '
I ask for no mercy—I will have none ; bfct justice I demand , and justice I must have . Has the " unnational " Star changed ita tone , and pleaded forme in mercy , since my incarceration ? No , my friend who has the arduous task of conducting it , and to whom you interests' " and the honour of humanity are as dear as as they are to me , has hurled defiance at all unjust authority . Talk of stretching the law ! when you read this , I shall have commenced sixteen months of solitary imprisonment What call you that but a proof of my value to you ; and would I now , for a clean discharge and my utmost wish to command , say , " Please , Lord Normanby , let me out ; I am sorry ? " No , by Heaven ! I would rather walk to the scaffold , and be buried with the murderers whose bodies lie jnst under my nose while I write .
Next week you shall have my plan for carrying Universal Suffrage ; and I must just observe that the different opinions about , and recommendations of the several plans already propounded , furnish the strongest possible proof of the impossibility of having an honest press in a number of hands . I approve of all the plans , and out of all one may be struck preserving the principal features of alL God bless you , fustian jackets ; to you and to you alone , I leave the defense of my character and support
of the Star , till I shall once more be able to mow down the snarling curs , who snap at the caged lion . With you I commenced the battle ; with you and for you I will finish it . Onward and we conquer ; backward and we fall . " Universal Suffrage , and No Sur . render ! " Let every man sing my Charter song , and call every child , whether boy or girl , that shall be born to you in thia year , Feargus , that we may keep a record of Whig villany . Keep firing at them incessantly ; beat the Corn Law humbugs out of the field , and we "will soon meet again .
I am , For ever , Yours to command , Feargus 0 'Co \<* Q ! fc P . S . —Now , with respect to the local liber- \ press , T will on thia second of July hazard a predic' fi 0 IL «« All ground for agitation upon the Corn Lav ^ isnowcut from under their feet , and , as small fish' must live as well as the large ones , the liberal loca \ sman fry nrast haye their food . They cant get chea > > , read > and tney will now setup a cry for Household f juffiag « , which , by degrees , will be so minutely , cunn , lt ) gly ajui systematically interwoven with the Corn j ^ w question , as to give to the latter all the strenf jta of the agitation fet the former , without any , the niOst remote intention
upon the part of the agitator , , to alter the suffrage one pin's point The mastera wi a fcait this hook , the local liberal press will fish with , it , but the mackerel wont bite . " I have told you a , thousand tiires , that if tbe ruling party would give ^ Househ o Su age , I would take of my bat and ma ' jto a low bow , and say , " Thank you" ; butl-haveas many times told you , that there never was » , there never willbe , a party in the state who will advocate Household Suffrage upon principle , or with any . other view than to suppress the demand foi Universal Suffrage . I have further told you , that if the people wire , to-morrow , to cease the d&mand for Universal Suffrage , both it and Household Suffrage would be buried in the same grave on tho following day Now , let those beggars , who would mock
tlia efforts . of the ever-memorable and ever-glorious Convention , ' ( that body which , with all its faults , will * never be equalled in this country in respect of utility ) just observe the failure of the Corn Law Convention , -with their £ l , 000 ' 8 at their back . These men will now endeavour , at the eleventh hour , and just upon the breaking up of Parliament , to establish good winter quarters , and to get quietly rid of the irrational Radicals for tho dull winter season . Well , I toll you now , that the Star never , while in my possession , shall advocate any Suffrage but the Universal ; that it never shall advocate the repeal of the Corn Laws , until we have acquired the Suffrage , and are in a condition to turn their repeal to your benefit instead of the benefit of the gambler . They have now tried the experiment
of prisons and transportation—that has failed to make a single traitor . They will next try the effect of blarney ; and when beaten , they must give in . You have now got , or ¦ rather the whole country has got to that state of disorder , that no medicine but the Suffrage can throw the weight off the chest Do you join the masters to repeal the Cera Laws to-morrow , and , when done , unless the scheme of reducing wsges to the Continental price succeed , either machinery must be improved , so as to make five , hundred thousand men do the work of three millions ,: or the experiment fails ; so , in either case , you are ruined . Either you will work for 3 s . 5 ^ d . per week , or five of every six pair of hands must be dismissed , or the masters must be ruined ; and , believe me , of the three , they -will lake precious good
care that the last shall not be the result . Every thing else must fail firat . Do jou imagine that because England had the start in Bteam power production , that to please her , the continent of Europe and America will stand still ; and if you are to take corn for all your produce what maws you must have . One would really suppose that every inch of ground in tho world wouUi at onoa be applied to growing corn for John Bull if the Corn Laws were repealed ; whereas , a bit here and there , together with what you and Paddy grovr , would be found quite enough . Now suppose that the repeal of these Cora Laws was" to set you all and at once to worlc ; what then ? Would England take more com than her people required ? I think not , and how very small-a portion of your produce would suffice to
exchange for that ? Just enough to render the remainder a drug . But corn would be always of some value , while your own produce would be of no value . Again , have your rulers in their successful attempt to make you hate every thing English , made you also hate your own flesh and blood , and love a Prussian , a German , or a Russian , better than a Wiltshire , or a Hampshire man ? Dont you see that in grasping at this distant phantom you would lese the substance at home ? and tha Wiltshire and Hampshire farmer , labourer , and shopkeeper , aye , and gentleman too , would eat their beef—if they had it—with , their fingers , instead of going to Sheffield for a knife and fork ; and would go to , inarket , to church , or to gaol in an old coat and " shocking bad hat , " rather than come to Leeds
for new ones . ; and would go without sheets , ( as I did for 1 ijnights , and without shirts and linings to their breeches , and without , stockings , rather than go to Manchester or Nottingham for the materials ? Can your ¦ universal views upon the suffrage be genuine , when you will not look under your own noses for subsistence , instead of running upon a wild goose c ' uasa to tho Continent ? Bear in mind what I have often told you , that there are two ends to a bargain ; and the bargain that you want , or rather that the master tailors wont to make with the Continental cooks is just this , — " Now , Monsieur , you hold the key of the cook-shop , and ¦ we sit on the lap board John Bull lias ¦ shut up . shop , put oat the fire , and pulled down the . oven- Therefore , we depend upon > you for what we want , and cant do witttout having three
times a day ; you only depend upon us for what you may use according , to :. your own caprice and fancy . " You poor fools . ' there is a mill-stone of four thousand millions of private and public debt round your necks ; and yet you listen to a parcel of ahoy-hoys , and quack doctqrs , arid cotton-spinners , aad hired brats of boys , who , scribble in newspapers , talking ef the benefits of free trade . Well , if you must have no tolls , first pull down all the turnpike gates , and then you and tb , e Russian can go through upon equal terms ; but if you are obliged to stop and pay toll , your companion , who' goes free , believe me , will % e far a-head before night Those fellows who write about the Corn Laws , would not know a hay-stack from a watch-house , except smcU as have been inside the latter . I doubt if
they know which end of the straw the corn grows at ; and yet the giltfgaupusses will chatter as if they perfectly understood the first principles of social economy , namely , the ' application of the soil to the sustenance , comfort , and ease of man . Just think , of Sergeant Gkeig , of Leeds , and Plint , and Dr . Smiles , talking about the blessings of free trade , and the' inhumanity , unchristianity , barbattty , and insanity of taxing food ; the blunderbusses [ they dont say a word of taxing the labour that buys the food . I tell you again , again , and again , as I have' often told you before , that' if the Almighty was to showera torrent of gold upun the earth , the blue bottles and specials , with the ex-ojjkios at their headt would surround it and preserve It to their own kindly use , so as in due time they might en joy it ; and
yet you expect that they are whistling , like the sailors , for , thia shower of corn , all for your benefit Poor fools ! I think now I have a good chance of an impartial Lancashire Jury of Corn Law r epealers , " at Liverpool . Standfast , my good men , and true . ! Stand by yourselves and for yourselves . Let us all rot in prison , but do you get the Charter . T have long predicted the storm a coming ; may tke poor * the indigent , and the needy—Go ^' a own faTourika—fipd shelter from ita pelt ings t and , O ! . may it tatter every fragment and uproot every pike of the . tree of corruption ; and . may the baneful plantjbe replaced by the sprig of liberty , throwin g
ouf its shady bowers to shelter all ihe human family . Never stir an inch from your Charter , —hug ib to . jour breasts—cherish it in your , heart » 7- * trengthen it witl your breath , for , by . my soul , it is the life , of man , and the staff of his old age . / The morb I think of it the more I love it . Thank God , I shall have , atxtem meuthsto think of it in solemn silence . Did yon ercK before hear of one country saying she should starve , if distant parts would not grow her dinner ? Oh , ' Eng land ! The land , the land , the land t th » m « a # , tha drink , the clothea ,. - tbe . house , the fire , fbe fcmUy ; freedom , all cry out , " the land I" Man '* Tnnerit » nce , element , man ' s resting-place , God ' s footstool . / Mydjspateh-bagj ' my portfiiio , my mbrro ? , mnatbd made up to-morrow ; so I must -out this-pwt of / fuj subject shorter than I had intended ; but I dfluj thus ;—If yon joiq-for Htnaehold Sngrago A jffijl w
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I aenmgt » Sunday , 7 th June . fc ^ r ™* " ^ , which occurred last evening at serren mSbsT eBoiTed mnch of whs * before appeared J *<* aer ? teriWia ' The n * riatiTe '& > & **** *» # » B brkfl Present l P ™ ^ consecutively . I W ^ Z ^ Jf *«™* WJ P «* eeding - 1 ''^ -aofJwie , my ^ is brought before
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« , . ¦ ¦ ¦ ¦¦ — . THE NORfrtilftit 8 Tin ; > | ' I ' "" " ^ J ^ 1 ' ^ .. ~ : 7 T ~^ ... - - - - — X _
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), July 11, 1840, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/king-y1kbzq92ze2692/page/7/
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