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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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TO THE EDITOR OP THE TIMES . Snt , _ M y reason for requesting the publication of m « se in your jottTMl ^ becaafl 6 u - ,, one ^^ ttouH be known to all parties , and as I teller * the luast is read by friend and fee , by every politician in Europe , I , therefore , request the use of its column * for iny defence against Lord Normanby - sTinexampled insoknc . and intolerance . - rould yon refuse the use of your rocket brigade , I = . - .: * : only bombard away with my own heavy artillery , ^ i- til I make myself heard . lam , Sir , Tour obedient servant , Feabgus O"Co > "Nen"' ^ rk Castle , July 2 nd . ^ ¦ 2 . —In my former letter I famished the medical
a ^ iosvi up the 14 th May , and- brought my pri-& n treatment down to tie 7 th of June . I now proc—J from the a 4 th to the 17 th , which was the day - [ r .,-n . oas to n ; y removal from the Queen ' s Bench , with treiuedieal documents , and with my treatment from tue 7 th , On the 16 th , the day but one before my reil :-tJ , Mr . Anthony Todd Thompson made the folio . T > . g certificate : — - laese are to certify tint I have visited Mr . Feargus C Ct-anorttisiHorRiR ^ and I am of opinion , that his r - val to York Castle , en Monday , would be attended v . \ L ^ reat risk and danger . " 41 Axihoxi Todd Thomson , M . D . ' -1 st 16 th . "
. .. is -vtm accompanied by an affidavit of a gentleman v - -riaiesssd its execution , r ^ a vhich Fox Maulo 5 ^ ,.- 3 t 3 y calls a declaration , ^ ] etter of fhe 16 ^ "v 1-.--. observe , hB acknowledges the receipt of the < 3 ^¦ :: ent- On the 17 th , at five o ' clock in the evening , ? - . ^> pex , the government surgeon appointed to the C :. : zi s Btach Prison , made a certificate precisely slnii-L . ¦ . that of Mr . Thomson on the previous day . Obs : . onthe 17 th , at five o ' clock in the evening , and t .-- -oeipt of which Fox Maule also acknowledges , ^ . ' here I give those two letters again to keep the s - ! h of my case before tte reader , and also to put tl . r id lie dirtily upon theK&ule Marquis , trfo tcvuld » .. . Ariher irJer / ere .
" Wh tehaD . ICth May , 1840 . > ie ^ —I am directed by the Marquess of Normanby t ^ knowle ^ ge the receipt of your letter of this day ' s c .: . \ rith iu enclosed cerEficite and declaration ; and 1- > quaint you tha ; his Lordship must decline giving cr ; - ~ rtctions in ihe matter therein referred to . *• I am , Sir , " Your oboditui humble Servant , " a . ^ . PH 1 LLIPP 5 . " _ ^ ctis O'Connor , Esq ., Queen ' s Bench Prison .
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• Sia , —Lord Nonnanby having decided that he wil r : ... rtfcer interfere to prevent the sentence of Hhe law b- :- \ - cairitd into effect in your case ,. after a perusal of I- - . i nonison ' s certificaie , it is not in my power to give y ; . u : y further answer than that conveyed in Mr . P-u ^ p ^ s letter yesterday evening . " I am , Sir , " Yours , most obedient , "F . Mauls . ¦ 1-rosTencr-street , May 17 , 1840 . "
? - > w in thirteen and a half hours after the last of tl _ .- ~ certificates , I -was removed ; to be travtlled two i . L 3 :-red and thirty miles in one day , by order of Lord K vrasanbr , » nd then w > "be put iu a felon ' s cell ; Lord > " -naanbv himself having appointed the-place of court ^ : -. ent , and Lord Norm&nby either knowing the rr . > -. or , what is as probable , ignorant of what he £ ^ . Id know , always , mind , for libel , while three o-hc-rpri-oners were confined in the Queen ' s Bench for l c-I ; yet fi » r libel , which I neither wrote , nor saw ,
I .: - ^ y cam e to , nor published , in thirteen an < 1 L . i : Lcurs 1 was sent off like a common felon : and t : r « somefcola say , " Oh ! heshould not complain , many c-b-.-ra are worse off" It reminds me of the troublesome t-t ^ -fellow , who , when told by one of his companions , " Oh : I my you ' re scratching me . J > " Whist , hold yonr fe .-r . iue , " ssTs he , " you ' re very well off , I ' m biting the o-. l .-T Mh > w . ~ Bat let thia be glossed ove ? as it may , tb ^ re most have baenBoms reason for sueh precipitancy , ir crmality , persecution , and indecency .
It was -wiVh much difficulty that I could prevail upon the deputy mirrffhai to divide the journey of our two hur . Ired miles , nor had I accomplished it till we arrived at the railway station . I went 180 mil e * the first dav an-. l rtsrted to York at seven o ' clock next morning , wher < : I a-rived at one o ' clock ; and I then requested the marshal to see the Governor , and ask if any arrange £ . ' -its bad been made , and expressed a hope that I » L < -uid have rooms , or a room , in the Govtmort house — « t all events , for tho first night . The marshal returned . He said that he was sorry to say that no
difference could be made between me and . any other prifr . nsr , further than wearing my own clothes . About t- ^ B o ' clock on the same night I was lodged in prison , ai-d upon my way I thought I had a right to expect , XL-^ t though Dr . Thomson , Messrs . Jago and Cooper tz- bsen doubted , yet Burtly , from the general knowlcckc of my bad Etate of health , which was matter of c rsideraiion with the Court of Queen ' s Bench tiiut some notice would have been transmitted tlb'r to the Governor or the magistrates . Bat no E . eh thing . I was bundled into a cold damp cell , T-ith . a handfud of wool in a dirty can ,. indiscriminately
X ' ? V fed irom the felon ' s store-room . All this I have before c > . -cribed truly and incontrovcrtibly . and now I come to £ - -: rroof , f-at it was intended I should b « held under ail ^ nd every one of the prison regulations , and in some L .-- - » ir . r . e 8 how they were ob-Djebed to be more e : ri . gent . On Wednesday morning , Mr . Hague , the C : lirman of the Visiting Magistrates , in company with tL :- Governor , called at the gate , and told me that he expected tb& : vrbile I was in tie prison , I would obey t ; the rules . To which I rtplied I think I Lave already shewn a pretty good disposition by rr-king up my bed in prison form and bringing down
fiiJ washing my chamberpot "That's quite right , " E . -j ; -vrared Mr . Hague , ily publisher and editor , and fiber persenj called that day , and were refused tvmittance . My solicitor called next day , and was also * Ttf isrd . On Wednesday evening , the surgeon ordered ri-e tea . The Governor told me that one ounce per ¦ VTcek , for fourteen times , and half a pound of sugar , was tje allowance . Ou Thursday , the other surgeon tulercd me to have my dinner as I pleased , and 1 iles : red the Governor to order it from an hotel . In some tiice after , he returned and told me , that the E > r . xL- > trsteB bad directed that 1 ehotdd have the gaol
s .: iowan £ e / o 7 invalids , and dressed in the prison , half a i-oand of mutton chops , bones making part of the ¦ w- sent . Kow , I was under the doctor ' s c-re , but it b -trns not without revision . That was on the 21 st . A > ouw : he 2 Sth I complained to the doctor that , from x _ : Laving ; a pillow , I was mu . h aiarmed , in conse-< i ence of giddinesa in my head , and falling down in u t cell when buttoning my boots . He ordf-red me a pil-1 f . I-gota very small one . I mnst come back to the I : nd . Upon that night I Wis aUotred to sleep upon the i ,.. e _ . ioor . I was completely exhausted and was taken t ^ jjminglv ill during the night . I sat up from twel ve
till two o ' clock , and then put on my great coat and lay down . I vraa nfarly snjotherrtl , and when my cell was c ; cued I staggered out as quick as I could , and said to tjjoiher prisoner , will you have tie goodness to bring ilown my I am really too weak . I went on in that way till Monday , the very day upon which my petition was to be presented- This was known , because my httexs wtre read ; and on Sunday I wrote to Mr . Strg > . aiit Taifourd , requesting he would not lose a moment . I was getting weaker every day . I sat upon a projecting none bench about a foot wide , backed by the wail , and tvinseqaeiitly could not occupy more than about six inches , as the wall is ai lie lack . I was obliged to leitn forward . I was anxious to walk , but the horrid
f ~; ell in the yard drove me in . On the 30 th , the surgeon eaaie into the ce ! l , and after sitting for about a minute upon the bdich , he aaid they should all ba " covered with wood , they were so cold" ; and he then desired the Governor , who was present , to let me have n . chair . Oa the 31 st I had a table . On that evening I jjot bo bad , that jny fellow-prisoners insisted upon eeadinx for the surgeon , who ordered me two glasses of - ^ ine . From Tuesday , the 19 th , to Monday , the 1 st cf June , I never took off , at night , any part of my dress , except m ; coat , stock , &&d boots : I was afraid of the dump . On Monday , the 1 st , Sir John Zaye and Mt . Hague called ne into the y * : rd , and read a list of alterations , which they requested Lord Kormanby to make in my behalf .
I stats them , subject to correction , but I do not think any will be offered . To be allowed to find my » 7 s food , « od to furnish a room for myself . To be » lljwod to have sheets , and to be shaved , or to shave myseif , oftener titan twice a week , daily , if I pleased T « tave a person to clean my shoes , and do other work .
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To have my correspondence unopened , and to correspond freely ( or the press , or otherwise , as Mi . Hague explained it To hare books and newspapers , and to BE ALLOWED THE SAME PRIVILEGE AS OTHEB PRISONERS , as regarded -seeing friends— "That is , " Raid Mr . Hague , " a double grating between you ; " and , if I pleased , to absent myself from chapeL At the end of each query , Mr . Hague said , " Is that what you want ? " to which I invariably replied , "No , Gentlemen ; my only request is , to be-8 ent back from a
felon ' s prison to the Queen ' s Bench . " " Well , " but said Sir John Kaye , " it is the magistrates and not you who ask these things . " I said , " I feel very much obliged to you , Gentlemen ; but I assure you jou may just as well ask Lerd Normanby to let me out altogether , as ask him to let me correspond freely . He does not care about any part of me but just so much , " pointing to my right hand . After some further conversation , Mr . Hague told me to furnish the hospital , and then retired , observing , "Mind , you must draw upon your own banker . "
I should observe , that Sir John Kaye shewed me a letter which he bad from my solicitor , Mr . Clarkson relative to the possibility of seeing me ; and as I have now seen the date of the correspondence between the Home-office and tie magistrates , this is important , aa their letter for guidance upon tho subject bears date the 22 nd of May , and no reply could have come , at least no definite one , up to the 1 st of June . By this application , it will be found that the magistrates , upon the 1 st June , wished me to be relieved from the prison regulations , and in one respect ;
to have me eUxxtied to the rank of felons , by being allowed the same privilege of seeing visitors . From the day that I came into prison , to the 1 st of June , no person ever , directly or indirectly , told uk- that I mu not to do my share of all the work which the rules im- ^ posed , with the exception as stated in my i > e ! itiohV that the Governor said I should be exempt while ill . Up to the 1 st of June , I had no more induli ^ -nces than if I had been in for murder , and was in b ; d he . ilth , but less , as I could not see a friend , and was denied an interview with my solicitor .
I now come to comment upon the discussion on my petition in the House of Commons , and here I ciunot avoid again remarking that Mr . Fox Maule was quite right to attempt to gag ms , after haviug so fouily misrepresented every fact , and some of them wilfully , as 1 shall prove : for instance , he tlurew discredit upon my statement , because Mr . Hafcue had denied that I applied for otter medical attendance than tho gaol afforded , and was rtfused . What is the fact ? That I never , directly or indirectly , by petition or otherwise , hinted at such a Thing . By reference to Mr . Fox Maule ' s remarks , after reading the correspondence of Mr . Hague , he most triumphantly refutes what I never hinted at , and he says he holds the petition in his hands , and
that the magistrates should have an opportunity of vindicating their character , aud he is cheered . But he says that I should not have been treated so . The Attorney-General says , if I have been treated so , it is quite illegal , so that I have been illegally treated , not treated as the Judges or the Government intended , or the law sanctioned , and yet I am not to write about it . The fact is , I have been treated as the Grreraient intended , and not as the magistrates wished , and now they want to throw it upon the Magistrates , or anywhere off their own over-loaded shoulders , and yet I am to write rtspectfully of a Government that tells me I have been illegally treated , but must hold my tongue under the infliction . I shall now very briefly analyse the correspondence : —
The first letter bears date the 25 th or May , and is by order of Lord Normanby , and would imply that tiio only question asked by the letter of the 22 nd was with reference to the admission of visitors , to which the most confused and bungling evasion is attempted , no person being able to comprehend his Lordship ' s lucubrations ; but perfectly clear where his Lordship states that upon no account should Mr O'Connor issue any political composition for publication . Xow , where is Mr . Hague ' s letter cf the 22 mi , for I have a shrewd mspicieu that it nays * 6 methin < about my health ; but why did no one as& f ^ r it » "Why did
none of the extreme Radicals , at all events ? The Lext letter is also by direction of Lord Normandy , ; uid tears date 27 th May . It professes to bj an indignant reflection upon the magistrates , provided some charges contained in a memorial from Hmidirsfleld be true . It asks if Mr . O'Connor , as stattd in the memorial , has been imprisoned in a felon ' s cell , or uubjtcted to the same rules as felons with regar . i to diet and discipline , or in any other particular ? I -will answer all truly . I was confined in a felon ' s cell ; I was subjected
to every rule with regard to diet and discipline , that Smith , who is charged with the murder of tho Constable at Huddersfield , would have been subjected to had ho been in ill health . The lett-r gofa on to say , and whether he Iim been labouring uuder severe indisposition ? Now , this Mr Kox Maule answers , in a subsequent part of bis speech , for he says , " Le was aware that Mr . O'Connor was anima ' . f-d . " Well , it is all just as stated in the memorial as regards these facts , and what then ? Why , I must baar it , and hold my tongue .
> ow , 1 come to comment upon Mr . Hague ' s letter . I must suppose , that as to part he was misinformed , and as to part he was mistaken ; for I cannot suppose that the declaration of the Attorney-General , in the House of Commons , " that ko had acted illegally , " could have the slighest influence . Mr . Hague sets out with repeating , word for word , what I stated in my petition , that " he gave me my choice whether I would prefer solitary confintment , or the society of two felons , and that I preferred the latter . There is this trifling
inaccuiaey . Mr . Hague says , two prisoners under sentence for three months . I stated it correctly in my petition , one for four , and the other for three months . Mr . Hague then states correctly what the surgeon ordered on the 20 th , and that I wore my own clothe 3 ; he then goes on to say— " And has not been required to perform any menial office in his own sleeping cell , or in the ward which he occupies , except making his own bed , which is now dispensed with . Any menial office , which he Las now done , he would not permit others to do for him . "
I csnnot believe that Mr . Hague wrote this ; but I will answer it I wa » required by the rules of the gaol to do all those offices , and Mr . Hague expressed his approval when 1 told him that 1 had performed Some of them . Making my bed was ntver dispense * with . I was in a dungeon from the 19 th of May , to the 1 st of June , and no mortal ever assisted me to do one single hand's torn in my cell , during those fourteen nights , with the exception , as stated in my petition , that the Governor allowed the Turnkey , as it was dark , upon the first night , to teach me how to make my bed .
I performed every other menial office that was performed , with the exception of the Friday morning , to which I hive before referred—and eo person , directly or indirectly , ever told me not to do the menial offices , with the exception , as stated in my petition , that the Governor said / should be exempt during my illness . Now it must be berne in mind , that Mr . Hague ' s letter bears date the 28 th of May , and if much is surmise , there is one fact , as to the making of my bed being dispensed with . Thi 3 is easy of proof . Who made it—who offered to make it ? I say no one .
Now , I come to Mr . Hague ' s second letter , also of of the 28 th of May . He cays " Mr . O'Connor has expressed to us his satisfaction with the treatment he has received . " Before I make a single remark , let us say what that treatment was , with which I expressed myself satisfied . 1 was locked up in a dungeon at seven o ' clock , while the sun was bright If it rained the rain came in . If it blew , the wind came in ; and if I shut the window I was smothered . My head was just
under the window . I lay down on a bag cf wool , with short blankets and no sheets , on the cold flogs . What clothes I took off at night I put them on wet in the morning . I was released at seven in the morning , and placed in a yard with a necessary , without a door , and three sinks ; when I was tired or stunk in , I sat down on a cold stone , in a long stone passage kind of plaoe , and dare not shut the door , from whatever quarter the wind blew , as it is contrary to the prison rules , and solitary confinement is the penalty .
Thus I shivered all night in one stone vault , and shivered all day in another stone vault , and walked in a stinking yard . I saw no one , had no books , no papers—my letters sent and received read by the Governor—helping to take my share of the duty—my sight failing , my back breaking , my chest aching , mj limbs paining—Bhaved twice a week , in common with felons—washing in the bucket that prisoners sometimes washed their pots in—never had one drop to drink from the 19 th of May till the 1 st of June , except from
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the pump , with the exception of two glasses of wine . If I did walk in the yard , gazed at by each rtrangex that passed as a kind of curiosity , and more than once surprised aud Blocked by females coming ju 3 t before the whUe J was there , and being found in a similar way by Mr . Stapylton , a magistrate , and more than once by Mr . Hague , the Governor , and otherswith a heavy and expensive establishment over which I had no controul—absent from friends who are dear to me-denied an interview with my solicitor , though I am to be re-tried at Liverpool ; and I was the satisfied Mr . O Connor . I am sure even foes will say 1 was easily pleased .
Mr . Hague goes on to say , " And is much better in health than when he arrived in York . " Now , how is this answered ? I began to smell a rat , by the great anxiety which Mr . Hague evinced to convince me that I was better , although I both felt and looked much worse ; and whenever one of iny fellow-pr isoners , the surgeon , or tho Governor asked me how I was , I invariably replied , " I don't know , you had better ask Mr-Hague , as he appears to know all about it much better than I do ; but I wish he had my back and chest for an hour . "
I can only Bay that I never , directly or indirectly , expressed satisfaction at my treatment to Mr . Hague but quite the reverse ; and at all times I told him that I was getting weaker and weaker every day . I might , and probably did , say that I felt convinced that the magistrates wished to treat me better than Lord Normanby would allow them , but nothing more . The next and last letter is by order of Lord Normanby to Mr . Hague . The only important part is , that in the first paragraph three letters are acknowledged to have been received from Mr . Hajue on the 28 th May , while only two are produced . Will some person in the
House have the goodness to call for that , as also the letter of the 22 d May , not produced , and that of tho 1 st of June , to which I have referred , as making propoeals to Lord Normanby for an alteration in my treatmeat . This is important , as it will clearly show that tho application of the Magistrates IN ENGLAND , upon prison discipline , have not much weight with Lord Xormanby . As to my present abode , it was last occupied by a soldier , who was placed there in solitary confinement for a month as punishment , although I admit its great superiority over my former habitation . With respect to my petition , the Under-Governor had it m
his possession the better part of three days , while his time admitted him to engross it . The Governor nad it and never objected to , or contradicted one word of it , but on the contrary corroborated it , by asking , not for any alteration , but for a trifling explanation , which I gave . The Attorney-General said , if true , I had been treated illegally ; Mr . Fox Maule says the same ; the House of Commons appear to think likewise . I prove that every word it contained was true . I defy raagis . trates , governors , turnkeys , prisoners , or inspector , to contradict a sentence of it , while it did not contain one half the trnth , and only conveyed what I had
experienced for a very few days , while I continued for a length of time to experience the same barbarous treatment , and for every grievance removed , a fresh and more galling insult has been added . Is It not very remarkable that the principal information sought by the magistrates in Mr . Hague ' s first letter of the 22 d was never answered , at least not conveyed to me till the Oth Jun » , that was whether or no I might see my attorney . But perhaps this may be answered by asserting that Lord Normanby gave my solicitor an order to see me . He did so , but it was to my London solicitor , and just think of interviews kept up between a solicitor in
London and a client in York Castle . Rathe r expensive visiting that . Moreover , it was for tho admissiun of Mr . Clnkjson , by name , that the magistrates applied , but at foot I shall give one of the rules which I copy from a list stuck up in the day-room ; and from that rule I prove directly that I have been illegally treated , as solicitors are admissible to prisoners , without any other application or permission than the rulo gives . The Attorney-General says , if my petition bo true I have been illegally treated . Mr . Fox Maule repeat * it One says he did not do menial service ; an - other Bays who asked him ? Another , he would not
allow any person to do it for him . In answer to them , I repeat that every word in my petition was true , and it did not contain one half the truth . I did do meniu * service . The rules compelled me , and Mr . Hague , the chairman of the visiting magistrates , told me to obey all the rules . I did allow a person to do a part for me ; but some he would not be allowed to do , and I was compelled to do it myself . I shall now make a contrast between my case and that of Courvoisler . Supposing be had been suspected of murdering Lord William Russell in Yorkshire , instead of London , and to have been subsequently arrested in London after a
Bevere illness , and to have , for the furtherance of justice been examined in London previously to his removal to York Castle , his commitment would have D © 6 n pre » ceded by , or accompanied with , a notice of bad health from the Home Office to the proper authorities at York . He would have been sent down by short stages . He would Have been lodged in hospital upon his arrival , and would have been put upon precisely the same diet which I was put on from May 21 st to June 1 st , with this exception , he would not have been kept fasting from Tuesday noon to Wednesday night , as I was . He Would
be entitled to wear his own clothes , as I am ; all prisoners before trial , and misdemeanants , are allowed to do so . Sick or well , he would have been allowed to see his friends and solicitor , at any time , during seven or eight hours of the day , without applying to any one . I was not allowed either , though the one I applied for , and stand indicted for next Liverpool Assizes . He would have been allowed a chair ta sit upon , or a cushion to place on the stone bench . I was not allowed either- till the 30 th of May . He would have been relieved from all menial offices : I was not , but was distinctly ordered to perform them .
Now , such would be the distinction between a supposed murderer and a libeller of the Whigs . This , then , is not my case—it is the case of the press ; no matter whether I am Whig , Tory , or Radical , I am insulted , and have been illegally treated , and through me the whole press has been insulted , and in consequence may hereafter be illegally treated . Another instance in which I was compelled to conform to the rules—that is , which the rules require , I forgot to state . Some days after my petition had been transmitted to Mr . Sergeant Talfourd , Mr . Tweedy and another magistrate , I think his name is Gossip ,
accompanied by a visitor , came into the yard , and called us out . We are obliged to go out when ordered by the magistrates . When I stood for some time , Mr . Noble said , '' That is Mr . O ; Connor . " Mr . Gossip said , " I did not know which he was . " To that I answered no , there is no other difference than our dress . He replied " Sir , as you are lame , we don't require you to stand out in the wet" I must apologise to the gentlemanly part of the public for having tamely borne such indignities . But I must explain why I did so . Had I shown the slightest disposition to be refractory , the Governor could order me
into solitary confinement , in a dark cell , to remain there for three days , upon half-e-pound of bread and a black pot of water for twenty-four heurs . Had any complaint been made to the magistrates , they could order me into solitary confinement for a fortnight , upon the usual fare . The alternative , then , my good sense told , would be far more galling than a quiet submission , to what I could hereafter receive ample satisfaction for . Some people may say , "What ! does Mr . O'Connor expect to find a prison a palace ? " No , he does not ; neither does he expect that that which to a murderer is comparatively a palace , shall be to him a dungeon . He does not ; neither had he a right to suppose that supplication should be made to place him upon a footing with murderers . He does not : neither bad he any right to
expect that he shonld be mare inhtiTnanly and insultingly treated than ever mortal man before was treated for a similar offence . He does not ; neither did he expect that while the first law officers of the crown and an officer of the government declared that he had been illegally treated , that heshould be prevented from proving his case , and still held in illegal bondage . The fact is , that no other person in this empire would have been so treated for a similar offence . He does not expect any indulgence , while he protests against a government Inspector being Inspector on Thursday the 4 th of June , and no Inspector on Friday , 5 th June , when Mr . O'Connor demands a full , a fair , and impartial investigation into his case . He does not expect indulgence ; neither did he expect , as a political misde-
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meanant , to be placed in a worse position than murderers , robbers , forgers , violators of women , and all other felons . I cannot conclude without expressing my warmest and most heartfelt thanks to the whole press of the empire , for the able and disinterested support which I hare received at its hands , and in return , I do pledge myself that my case shall not furnish a tame precedent for their degradation . I will beggar myself or have satisfaction , full and fair . And , as the first instalment , I demand the immediate dismissal of Mr . Inspector Crawfourd .
Since I got thus far the inquisition farce has been repeated ; and if the rest of my case is uninteresting to the public , the whole matter connected with this most anomalous , unheard of , if not unprecedented business , must be a subject of deep and lasting importance to every member of the community . On Tuesday , the 9 th June , Mr . inspector Crawford returned to York . At two o ' clock he requested my presence iu the magistrate' room . When I entered , he said , " Mr . O'Connor , I have been sent officially to report upon your case . " I was naturally thunderstruck , but in a few minutes the whoie plot was developed . The inspector
said that he would proceed by having the former evidence read over to me , that I might comment upon it-As soon as it was concluded , I instantly discovered the meaning of thia tardy Whig liberality . I found that tho secret investigation had furnished evidence , which negatived every single allegation , contained in my petition . That with such a strong case as the inspector hod laid before his employers , some wily trickster in the Cabinet thought that it would look better if the prisoner had at least an opportunity of replying . Of course , to refute was wholly out of the question . The evidence principally relied upon , and
which , if true , would completely upset my petition , was that of John Abbey , turnkey . When his evidence was read over , I was asked if it was true , to which I replied , " Not one single word from the beginning even to the end : let the man be called in . " He was culled in , and retracted every single sentence , declaring that he did not know what was taken down . Mr-Hague reminding him , . 0 yes , you did ; here is your name . A proposal was made to amend it , when the inspector decided with mo that it should be retained , aud to it should be appended , " RETRACTED . " The Governor coutradicted him ; explaining how it
was impossible that it could be true . Frederick Holroyd , a prisoner , who the turnkey said had spoken to me in the passage , and offered to do all my work for me , was called , and truly declared that he had never either seen me , or spoken to me in the passage , and never made any such offer . He , Abbey , said that I could not have performed what I stated in my petition without being seen by witness , as he let me out of my cell for the very three mornings mentioned . The other turnkey and the Governor proved that he had never let me out after the first morning ; and Holroyd proved that I did as stated in
my petition , but which was contradicted by the turnkey . This witness was never reprimanded . Mr . Hague stated that I did not make my bed after the 28 tb May . I proved that no person ever "was ordered , or ever did give me the least assistance , or ever entered my cell . Mr . Hague replied , " Well , it was the Governor who told me . " Whitworth , a prisoner in my ward , proved that I had done everything stated in my petition . I disproved every word in Mr . Hague ' s three letters to the Home Secretary , and , also , Whitworth proved that Mr . Hague told me that he expected me to conform to all the rules . The Governor admitted that
Mr . Haguo was mistaken in the dates as to the time when a chair and table ( the only indulgences I had received ) were given to me . Not one single sentence iu my petition could be disproved . But yet all the evidence that was taken in my absence on the 4 th June was retained , merely taking my observations . The inquisition lasted till half-past five o ' clock : aud when it broke up it was determined that it should be resumed at teu o'clock on the following morning , the Inspector observing to the Governor , " Mr . Governor you will take care and have Mr . Hague here at ten instead of eleven o ' clock . At that time Mr . Hague had left . Upon the following moruing , my petition was to have been entered upon and all the corrected
evidence was to have been read over tome . At eleven o ' clock upon the following morning , a turnkey came to my cell to look * for a fellow prisoner , and to bring him befor the Inspector . I instantly wrote a note , which was delivered by the turnkey , and of iftvhich the following is a copy : — " Sir , —I request to be present at the whole of your investigation" into all matters contained in my petition to the House of Commons . " I have the honour to be , " Your obedient servant , " Feargus O'Connor . ¦ York Castle , June 10 th . "To Mr . Inspector Crawford . "
Not having received any answer to my note , and suspecting that another trick was about to be played , I wrote the following letter , which was delivered by the Under-Governor to the Inspector : — " Sir , —The present investigation having for its object , according to the Marquis of Normanby ' s declaration to Lord Brougham , a scrutiny into the allegations contained in my petition of the 25 th
May ; and as the statements therein contained have been contradicted by several letters written by Mr . Hague to the Marquis of Normanby , I protest against any evidence being token in my absence . I further protest against Mr . Hague beiog present while I am excluded , he acting as chairman and examiner . " I have the honour to be , fcc , " Feargus O'Connor . " "York Castle . 10 th June .
"To Mr . Crawford , Inspector of Prisons . " When the above letter was written , a Mr . . Harper , clerk to the magistrates , came into to my cell , with my comments on the previous day , upon the evidence taken at the inquisition of the 4 th . I asked when the examination was to be resumed . Ho replied that the inspector was in a great hurry BACK , and did not intend to proceed further with the inquiry . I then added the following postscript to my letter : — "I require that my petition be entered upon , when I undertake to substantiate every allegation therein contained . F . O'C . "—Mr Harper then read over my answers to some questions
suggested by the former examination , which I signed , but not without having attached , before my signature , a protest against the inspector ' s conduct ; and haviug reminded him that the examination was to have been resumed at ten o ' clock that day . The inspector daparted . Mr . Hague had been sent for , but he declined taking any further part in the business ; and from what I learned during the investigation , I could very plainly see that Mr . Hague bad been himself very grossly im posed upon , both by the turnkey and other parties ; and having put all matters together , his application for greater Indulgences than Lord Normanby would grant ,
my own conviction that he had been misinformed , and my former belief that he wished me better treated . 1 was , under all the circumstances , beginning to have a favourable opinion of Mr . Hague , until the following day , when , by his authority , I saw published in the York Courant , as a justification of the visiting magis . trates , the evidence which was taken at the inquisition of the 4 th , and every word of which was either cot . tra dieted or retracted on the 9 th , while not a word of the evidence taken when the inspector did act officially was published . Upon reading the report in the York Courant , I felt more forcibly than ever the burden of the Noble Marquis ' s song— " Mr . O'Connor must not publish anything . " I find that the " justification" of
the magistrates has been . copied . into all the provincial press of Yorkshire ; while to those magistrates I say . that every sentence contained in their -justification is false . If an officer is charged with an uugentlemanlike act , the whole corps to which he belongs , requires an investigation , as well for their protection as for the honour of the service and of their own corps . So with the bar , so with the church , so with every society , and so it was with the high and honourable order ef justices . till their character was destroyed , and their dignity with it , by the innoculation of Lord John Russell ' s ex offieto Poor Law Guardians . If any justification hi necessary for breaking the obligation imposed upon me by the tyrannical edict of the gaol deliverer of Ireland , it is
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this . Where ia the gentleman in England , or in the world , who would not , under the circumstances , have done likewise ? I am sore that the principle Involved in the proceeding to which my letterrefers will , without reference to the individual , be stamped with the brand of every honest man ' s reprobation . What the poor protection which the prison house affords to b 9 withdrawn and the humane Irish gaol deliverer to be allowed to violate the sanctity of the prisoner ' s cell , to illegally incarcerate , falsely impugn , inquisitorially condemn , and then dare to throw the odium of his time-serving
villany upon the shoulders of the gentlemen of Yorkshire . Mr . Inspector Crawford has told me a mean , a base , a pitiful falsehood , to further the as pitiful design of his pity masters . I hurl defiance through the felons ' prison bars , at the gang , and , so help me God , I would rot in my dungeon than tamely submit to such villany . I have not done either with the Noble Marquis , his understrapper , or his non-official , official Inspector . My Lord , I have the honour to remain your prisoner , FEARGUS O'CONNOR .
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TO THE RIGHT HON . LORD JOHN RUSSELL . Letter III . ON STANDING ARMIES . " The standing army is a mortal distemper , of which the English Constitution must inevitably perish . " Hume ' s Essays , ii . 376 . My Lord , —You was once Paymaster of the Forces ; and no doubt you have acquired some knowledge of the character of those heroes who have fought the battles of
their country . You have also , no doubt , discovered that there is great virtue in the army , and that it is now so interwoven into our system , that it is . an indispensable portion of the whole . In 1839 , on the 5 th of January , which you call the end of the financial year , the entire army - of England consisted of 109 , 818 men fit for effective service , and 85 , 090 non-effective , making a total of 194 , 908 men , maintained at a cost of £ 6 , 989 , 50 ( 3 , out of the earnings of the labourers of these kingdoms .
" Reform ! Retrenchment m Peace } . ' ! " This was your motto when you was Paymaster of the Forces . Your reform was from bad to worse , my Lord ; and as to your retrenchment (?) let you and I compare the state of the question . On the 5 th of January , 1840 , the entire effective army of Great Britain consisted of 121 , 112 men , being 11 , 294 more than there were in 1839 . This additional
force , my Lord , your Parliament gave you to put down the Chartists ; and 83 , 871 non-effective , making a total of 204 , 983 , besides 1 , 219 non-effectives that were made useful . This force will cost the labourers of this country £ 7 , 149 , 168 , more money , my Lord , than sufficed to maintain all the poor people in England and Wales , when your Lordship and Yorkshire Brougham vehemently declared that they ( the poor ) " would eat up the estates of the rich !"
There was , too , a supplementary estimate , granted by the talking House , of £ 75 , 000 , to pay the expense incurred in putting down the Chartists by the 11 , 294 new soldiers . All this , my Lord , ia " Retrenchment ?'' Surely our Standing Army is a " mortal distemper " that exhibits strong febrile symptoms of scarletlna . I fear not all your political empiricism will allay : the Constitution is likely to perish under the attack , and the vile treatment it receives from such wretched physicians as you and your colleagues , will hurry it to its end .
Your Lordship and your coadjutors are the most contemptible of state quacks that ever seized the helm of the Government , and your legislation is productive of the greatest misery to the people , and most destructive to the peace and order of society . Patronage and power are the charms that keep you hi office . To secure the loaves and fishes , you go on tinkering and blundering , like Lampedo , declaring : — " Although to cure be beyond up still , It will go hard , if we can't keep them ill . "
Such is your doctrine , verified in every measure that your House of talk thrustaupon the country . The only specific you have to silence the prayers , petitions , remonstrances , and commotion of a much-wronged , insulted , abused , and degraded people , in an extra dose of bullets , blisters of bayonets , accompanied by phlebotomy upon the head with policemen ' s bludgeons , and a little fresh airing in a county gaol . My Lord , suppose we search into the cause of the " mortal distemper ? " I find we have no less than four Field Marshals ; Wellington , who for the use of £ 400 , 000 of public money , pays to the Queen yearly , on the 18 th of June , a small tri-colour flag , Buch as is
called the tenure of Strathfieldsaye , in Hampshire , a splendid estate , bought , I believe , from Baring , the millionare out of the taxes to reward the great Duke for his military services . He has , besides , a pension of £ 4 , 000 per annum , granted by Acts 50 and 52 George , III ., cap . 8 , 37 . He is also Constable of the Tower of London , £ 947 9 s . 7 d . ; Colonel of the Horse Guards , £ 1 , 800 ; Colonel of the Grenadier Guards , 1 , 200 ; Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports , £ 475 16 s . Od . ; Ranger of tho New Forest ; and Custos Rotulorum of Hampshire ; with great patronage and fees arising out of the same , besides many other offices and emoluments . This man has cost this country , in Parliamentary grants , military pay , pensions , and emoluments , above one million
OF MONEY . Prince Leopold , King of the Belgians , who was raised to the rank of Field Marshal when he married Princess Charlotte above twenty years ago . This lucky man of Coburg breed , although he is a king , receives £ 50 , 000 out of the taxes , besides a palace at Claremont , to run to in case the Belgians should turn him off— £ 35 , 000 of this he pays back , out of good nature , pocketing only £ 15 , 000 ! Lord Hill , Commander in Chief , pay , £ 3 , 458 7 s . 6 d ., besides forage and travelling expenses , amounting to £ 578 19 s . 8 d ., allowed £ 2 , 000 for a secretary . He receives a pension for military services , £ 2 , 000 . I believe he Is a colonel , too , in full pay . The patronage of his office is worth £ 20 , 000 per annum .
Prince Albert , another lucky Coburg , is a Field Marshal , forsooth ! " A fellow who never set a squadron in the field , Anil the division of a battle knows NoiuoretuanaspiuBten" : This mushroom Marshal is Colonel of the Hussars , £ 1 , 000 , and cannot ride a horse without endangering his neck . He is , also , the lucky husband of the Queen , whose Civil List for 1840 is £ 386 , 558 63 . 3 < L ; in addition , the Prince is allowed £ 30 , 000 for pocket money , which extraxagant sum you , my Lord , wanted to raise to £ 50 , 000 .
Again , my Lord , I find that you have now on full pay not less than ONE HUNDRED AND NINETY EIGHT GENERALS ! who , this year , are to Bhare of the public plunder NINETY-TWO THOUSAND POUNDS !! being more money than the whole of the poor rates of Rutlandshire , Hertfordshire , and Berkshire . Call you this Reform , my Lord ? O , fie ! Be not alarmed when I tell you that one hundred and ninety-eight hand-loom weavers of Burnly , Padiham , or Colne , in Lancashire , must work sixteen hours a day , for thirty years , that is a whole generation , before they would receive as much money as you
squander away upon as many idle generals iu one year . Nay , I should not exaggerate , if I tell you that one hundred and ninety-eight poor stockingers of Sheepshead , or Mountsorrei , in Leicestershire , must work forty years for the same amount of money . Compare . the relative value of the General and the weaver , the one an idle drone , the other a toiling slave ; the latter toils almost incessantly to obtain a miserable morsel , the former " toils not , neither does he spin , " for his daily bread ; the labourer enriches his employer , and contributes , by his industry , to elevate the country in the scale of
nations ; the General , like a locust , preys upon the fruits of the labourers ' toil ; the weaver slaves for sixpence per day , the General puts his hand into the army chest and takes out £ 112 s . 6 d . for doing nothing , just sixty-five times more than the weaver gets , for twenty eight yards of calico ; the General , who has carted bis way to fortune , struts along in gaudy habiliments , with cock tails sporting in the wind , mocking the sufferings of the poor , and when he choses to retire , he receives £ 200 per annum ; when he dies a monument is erected to his memory in St Paul ' s at the public expense , and his widow would receive
£ 150 per annum out of the taxes . 132 widows of Generals extract from the taxes £ 15 , 840 this very year . But the hand-loom weaver moves along the earth pale and emaciated , clothed in miserable attire , a mere shadow of humanity brooding over his wrongs ; when
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hia atreagtb . Mis him he is cast aside as wortbW ferwant of succour he sinks ^ into fi > ' -j ^ $ matim «? unmoved , by flipae whofatteatid np © Ef bit toil , W wife finds relief . in elemosynary aid in the Post ' l ! BastUe , If yon doubt tiiis , my Lord , search the nel of the Hand-loom Weavers * Commission , compar «^ earnings of the weavers witti the amy estiniat * * visit the huts ( for houses they are not ) of the laboL * of the weaving districts , and judge for yourself . ^^ What do you with so many Generals , my W find that you have one General to every 511 effedJ menor one General and threequarters to
, - ov ^ J ^ ment I think yonr reform is much wanted amoniJ Generals , for on referring to the Army List , I nnaY [ many of these aristocratic officers actually hold apJu ments as Colonels of Cavalry , with additional foeon ?" £ 1 , 000 , and of Infantry of £ 600 per annum , W . other high offices as Governors of Islands and Colo * Commissioners of the Military Schools , and of theiS Hospitals of Chelsea and Kilmainham , withnujMh civil offices to which salaries or emolumentsare atta *? not forgetting the honourable offices of Cpmmanaal Brigades of Gendarmerie , and Governors of Poorly Bastiles . ¦ **»
These dignitaries and pluralists of the army are fc special objects of yonr Lordship ' s care and attentt . Howick and little Cam Hobhouse , the fellow ? declared that nothing but brute force would reforms Commons , and advised the Radicals of 1819 to b ! the Members of the House of Commons out by the * lock the door , and throw the key into the Than ? yes , that same Hobhouse who , in describing the tM , cardinal virtues of the Whigs , said they werepiw T \ r % % *^ fn ? lf . A VfA % K AA 4 H n 4 ' *« fc mm - _~ - " J "_ ' -- - ^^ haughtyoverbearing
* —^ ** , , saucy , mean , dirty , shabby , tm ling , cowardly , sneaking , imbecile , and impo £ That same man , my Lerd , whom you have taken bj » . hand , entered tho War-office to reform that dew iniquity ; but he shrunk from the task , for hefow that to tamper with general officers of the army «* , dangerous experiment He found the " mortal dtofc per" too violent for his quackery , and , in the m my Lord , it will destroy both you and the Coml tution . ¦ ""*
My Lord , I shall next examine the Colonels ofa , army , and lay bare a little of the trickery of those 2 morants . Meantime , -we will breathe , and next ** at it as ? ain ; for I can assure you , my Lord , I am tea , uest to cleanse that Auguan sink of iniquity . I am , Your Lordship ' s obedient servant , July 13 th , 1840 . Y 1 ND icatoi
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THE LONDON DEMOCRATS AND THE INCH CERATED CHARTISTS .
TO THE EDITOR OF THE NORTHERN STAR , Sir , —In your last week ' s Star iB a comranniatb from three journeymen curriers , which states al they have sent 10 a . for the relief of the wivei «! families of the incarcerated Chartists , which is a wrth subscription of 3 d . each ; they also express their son at the negligence of the Metropolitan Chartists h * setting the example . I join with them in the cobC nation of their disgraceful conduct , but , at the i * time , implore them to raise themselves from thefrtn ! sent unenviable situation , and to , at least , exertX selves to gain , once more , that proud : pre-emiZi which they were , a few years bade , in the possesiotT The great body of those , professing to be Char&bi , the Metropolis , are not worthy their freedom , k deserve to be kept in eternal slavery they attend public meetings—cheer on the speakers—and if »
one amongst them talks abont fighting , or any ofe such absurdity , he is at once a patriot , and ia sure tii applauded at every word he utters , no matter hoirm nonsensical it may be ; but if he should-happen to « arrested for sedition , he is at once " a foolish felki" Oh ! he ought to have known better ; " if he asks fei to subscribe , to enable him to get up his defence to assisted by a few , and that few have to do everytto to subscribe , work , aud everything else or < b nothing is subscribed , nothing is done In £ tho sreat body of the people iu the Metropolis are as lookers-on and critics , for , if they join the assocUtt * they never pay anything ; they only find fault if £ working few happen to fail in any plan which they k , been attempting to carry out ; they ( the critic ' s ) a seldom found wanting . Oh ! no , they are pnfa enough with their censure on the occasion .
If I am wrong—if I have belied them , lettta prove it to the contrary , by subscribing , at once totii fund for the relief of the families of the suffak patriots . ~ I will , however , give them another chance of redwing their long-lost characters , and , I hope , andthatta , sincerely , that they will avail themselves of the on * tunity to place themselves once more on a level vitk their poorer brethren . At the next monthly meetterf the Metropolitan Charter Union , I will , \ < If myhaia permit me , ) bringforward a plan to appoint aCommita for the purpose of receiving subscriptions in the van districts , to meet once a week , or part of themto itM
, cue night in the week , at each , district , there totab down the names of subscribers , with the amount 48 . intend to subscribe weekly , and to receive their sub *? tions . The committee should likewise ( the whoM them ) meet once aweok , to pay alimonies to the t » surer , who should be appointed at the same time life committee , when the monies collected shall be a off to those persons most in wantof it ; the commito should publish monthly an account of all monies neiti and expended , the same to' be published in the D » cratic papers . They should keep their books opafo the inspection of the subscribers at all reason times .
I think if this plan is adopted , and carried out p perly , there will be no further complaints of the SBfh * ness of the " Cockney" Chartists , for it must be eiW to all that it is high time something was done by tho , for every week they catch and ( deserve it too ) a ft from some one or other ; the other week , froa & Masou , about the delegate meeting ; since tbeift Editor of the . Mar , who , I think , took a verym * view of the case . for he blames the leaders of the lost * party , which I considered to be unfair , for . I caai *« him that the situation of a leader in L * don is anything rather than enviable , the latei of the Metropolitan Charter Union ( I mean the GobbD or , at least , the majority of them , are very wflliij ¦ sond a delegate to Manchester , but it is my opiniifcj they do , that they may pay him themselves , a , * least , very nearly , out of their pockets . The la *" may do every thing , and get little or no assistanctft * the great body .
Indeed it is hardly fair that the leaders shooM *• blamed for everything . I should not have noticed * at all , only that I perceive that our patriotic Vd O'Connor , even through the bars of his prison , wfr dulge in a passing slap at the Metropolitan leaden , * he blames for net sanctioning the ( with all dn * ference to Mr . O'Connor ) the absurd , in fact , ridiaK notion of getting up a public procession of 500 , 000 »* to escort Mrs . Frost to the Queen . Had it hsnl * attempted , it would have been a most miserabli ^ monstration of our weakness ; for we should not I *" been able to muster a tithe of that number . I * " 11 induced to offer these remarks from any ill-fedim *" wards Mr . O'Connor . No , far from it ; no penon" ?" preciates his exertions more than the humble indit * that pens these lines ; but , knowing the influence )! 1 O'Connor has over the minds of the peeple i » * j country , I think it is nothing but right W * erroneous statements should be contradicted , « ^ are likely to do a deal of mischief if they are not
I cann « t conclude this letter without thanking M «* Jarret , Edisbury , and Judge , for their prafMW « w example set by them , and trust that so good s ps" ? will not be lost sight by my fellow cockneys . If" * it shall not be the fault of Your fellow Radical , W . A . MAW ** London , July 14 th , 1840 .
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TIUXCOULTRY . Public Meeting . —A public meeting wasji ^ the Rev . Archibald Browning ' s Hall , on We ^ J oay , the 8 ih inst . for the purpose of forming . »<** tist Teetotal Society , for the period of three moB » according to the advice given some time ago . >> r ™ persecuted friend of the people , Fearjrus 0 Con »* The Rev . Archibald Browning , and Mr . Abrd » Duncan addressed the meeting in a very 8 ° rf and agreeable manner , on the advantage to MT rived from Buch a society as was about to bees *
Ii 8 hed . Each concluded amidst a cheerful cl * H " of hands . The roles was then read aud adopts a large portion of the meeting ; above * , ^ hath signed the pledge , and every day ados wr numbers . The society is to be dissolved , * J » "Jj reconstructed every three months . A Soci » i » : ing was also held in the Hall , on Fri d ** *? fl inst ., for the purpose of raising a little J " Sj ( aid in defraying the expense incurred at t" *^* that disrtroguished patriot , Dr . M'Dou all , *** # expect win soon be able to favour us wro *
WIGAW . Ghabtist Association . —At a meeting Wigan Chartist Association , bold at theirp ^ meeting , on Sunday night , a very strong rew reprobatory of the attack made on ?* x .-v * £ by Mr . Bnrns , while Mr . O'Connor ¦ ¦ «« & defendmg himself . We likewise came ^ tw -j minanation of pnrhcasing some r * " *? ' ^ i and distribute them amongst those ^^ L of * properly versed in politics , or in w ^ n awx ^ , bad effects of . government , and py & £ . **)! hope to enlighten and gain to the ? WJjyferi who , from want of intelligence , are «»; 'fLgesl and apethetic , and we would respectftliy . ™» our brother Radicals who are m as 8 ooi » t" »» likewise .
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6 THE NO lit HERN STAB .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), July 25, 1840, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/king-y1kbzq92ze2694/page/6/
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