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    TLJ{ CmUmtiii ^ Tem our Sixth ptgej TLordship , and to the timo of thii Court , in troubling T ° * itk what 1 have already said ; b » t , my Lord , I shall be enabled to show that thereu indeed a conjpir » -cy in this country—that there is a coayj *^ imoogRt certain parti- * s , to oppress , to CKerwhelm , and to crush , xs « , J jhall be enabled to » ow yoor Lordship and tfea ^ 0 * y , and thin 1 think I « all be entitled to do , to disabuae the mind * of the Jury of the prejudice which has-been inBtiller into their mind * , that ever since I began to adv&cate the r epeal of the Poor Lair Amendment Act , and the amelioration of i * e Factory System , I have been marke d by the prew in the hands of her Majesty ' s Government , and represented to tie ccuntry as one of the bas ' * t and ran « t <~ roinal nf *?^ 7 l ^ \ v t ^ & ^ Z ^ T ^ ^ ™ ^^** tob wit * . what 1 have already said ; b » t , my

    men . My Lord , u is imposable lor publications of tills nature to have existed , as they do eriit , without the minds of this jnry being prejndioed ; and I do oonceiv ? , therefore , that l axx entitled on this occ * - °°° r » a to your lordship and the jary a few extracts , from Mae sewapapm is the pay of the administration : in which thi * description of character nu teen applied to nw ; not occasionally loosely , or ? en ? raLy by the press alone , but by the very parties wao are the prosecutors ia this aise . If lean show that tee gOTarnment bow prosecuting me ha * &ssidica * rv perasted , and continuously endeavoured to prejudice ins pubac miad again * me , it is . my Lord , « priori , an argument that I am not the kind of man 1 have teen represented to be , and that this is not a Una fide

    protecuaou , butone got up for the purpose of craving a man by falsa pr . nences and not by the facts of « e , *^ f- * 1 J Loro , in tha Mtrnmg Chronicle of tae iOta of > 3 v . 1837 , it is staled thai the tories- had be ? B tempering—my Lord , you * e » that this is a poaucai pro » s ? cution from beginning to end—the Tories had beem tampering w » th the manufacturiBjj awsea . Mr . Stephen ht-re read an extract from the Morning Chronicle . * I give , tbat as a gpeciman of th ^ spirit and manner in which ay speecbei * nd discourses are professed to have beea made , and era actn&By recorded . Oi Uie inferences that are thus wilfully asd malirbnely made to be-dednced from these seppaeed and in-TCrtedprewJM ^ -and-of-Tb * exhorta&ona which are

    aenvered urtho « e addresses , Unding t » lead , bs the Uirontde obaerrc * , men of property in my neighbourhood , very narrowly to leok after me . " Gentlemen , you have s » en to-d » y , yon baTe had a proof to . 7- ' ti ^ t men V ^ of ^ rtj , " the member * or two families have very narrowly looked after mo on this occaeioa , for it will be for you to say , bj and bye , whether yCU believe the statements they have deli-7 ^ , 1 *? ? " * C ^ or £ " Acd Ihea ' J i- » ^ ^ e blobe of the 27 x . ) x of Nov . last , immediately alter some disturbance * that took place atTodmorden , a towB at whic \ 1 never was bat once or twice , perhaps twice at mo * :, there appeared a statement accruing me as the cause of tae serions rioU at Todmo rsen : —

    " The eosMqneneei of which fell npcn tie poor aeJaJ .-a Pf ° PV Lwk » *»* b * " ™ goaded into deei « of Tioleace by O'Cca-» w ,, i-iewen , Stophea * . and O »» U « , n > d te » gen-j for « nulw r ^ rpoKt . Oa taeir hesAt « ioui , 3 ail ike Le » rie » t pmaimeat ; tfi * T are meit mortdly foreaio » t in the Cliae . So say I , my Lori . On the heads of those foremost in the crime let the punishment come down . On tke head * of those men whose opinions , whose teachings , whc&o instructions have led to a breach of tae good old laws of this country , let , 1 will not eay tie just punishment , but Jet tie vengeance of the law , whose * vindicator" ths Learned Attomey-Generxl i » upon the preset cccajtIoii—let tie vengeance of the law descend in thunderbolt * to cm « h

    mem , for they are mdeed a mtral pestiience—they they arts rndeed a nuisance in roaecy . Bat , " my l ^ ora , and Gentlemen of tae Jury , if I were a m ? m < rf thi 3 descriptioa—if this had been the tecour and tendency of say » j > &ch&- —sad of my exhoriati ^ ns , * s 1 said to you before , the Attorney-General baa materials abundant for the purpose of institutiDg a prosecution agairst cte ; but no , my Lord , t £ e > law cannot be u vindicated " in that way , because , 1 should then have an opportunity of stating fairly . usp&rtUlly and fullj , in black and white-, what cannot be jnafeken , without calling witnesses to swear that I spoke 23 or 30 minutes , acd who only recollect what I said within three minuteg ; that all the rest had escaped their

    recollection—that they could not bring forward aaother genttcce—another ttring of words- ^ -not even . & ccnyosction or a prepesition , or ev « i so mach as a note of a-drairaiicn . No , my Lord , to :-nch subterfuges miserable and paltrr , and 1 wculd add dL-gracsful , they are compelled 10 have recourse in order to crush « ce , if not one cf their Ee- 't important , certainly one of xhilr most delerlllkird and mo * t ieajly trneaaies . Why , bt L'Td , to ir . ca alen | thhai this Government gone , ' that in another indictment at Liverpool to which I shall have tn appear , and to which 1 saail have to answer by aod bye , as soon as this Jury has released me . his Rated _ jn that indictment that in the midst of my discourse , the Rer . G * n t ]» meii made a . p * u * e , sjk !

    gave a coi or motion , meaning go and so , and * o acd so , to the subversion of the laws and dignity of ocr Sovereign Lady the Qae ? n , her crown and aigtity , and all the re * t of it . N * o » , G ntlemen , yon cannot believe , it is impossible for aay moral agent to W . ieTe , that if the object of the Attorney-General wy ti > * vindicdie ths le » , " he would be compelled in . the midst of all my discourses , accounts -of which have been reported by tiie press , it will be impossible for him not to build the prosscntion oa those sediaons di ? conrs <» s , if hs couLd tncceed in proving them so . Eat it u the co . nso . on-ne . it , the eenaiatrxhat he wo ^ lld not sacceed in ob ' -airdng a coavietion that compels him to have recourse to this trifling , and I will add , this trumpery prosecution .

    1 will now read to your Lordship and the Jory the paragraph out of which the * a prosecutions origiaaiiy arose , and wiiout which , that is to say without the prejudices created in coaseqtience of it , and the general feeling raia&d agaiast mo throafho'at the country , the Attorney-General woald not eren have dared to come down to Chester with this prosecution . In the Manchester Guardian of ths 12 th of December , foar days after the burning of Mr . Jowett ' i null , appeared the following articl « , jwhich was copied into ike London press , and tSrongh them all the provincial press generally . Here Mr . Stephen * read an article from tb * Manchester Guardian , charging the fire of Joweu ' a Mill upon , as the effect of his speeches or iastifaiiqua . It wsj to bricg unier your notice that paragraph that 1 reaa to you the whole- of this article , a

    considerable porU » n of it not bearing on the qutsaon before yon , in order that you might see cot only the specific charge tb . ug laid against me by the exitor oi this newspaper , writing , as ha says , irom iuformation communicated to him , but that you might also ee- the spirit in which he c-mmftnte on ray proceedings and the language which he puts into my mcu ^ h , lacguafe which , as he put * it , 1 need not tell you 1 E ? rer uttered , im which no man in his senses could utter . Immediately after tbii , for tkia Gentlemen is only a sample ol scores and hundreds of newspapers which I might produce before you if it were Eecerstry ; but I ha * ien to direct your attention to anc-ther article reported in all the papers at the time—a speech said to be delivered by one of her Majesty ' s Government , the Government which i * now prosecuting Hie on the present occasion . Mr . Fox Ma . uie

    said" Tr > V so \ 0 Ti 5 tl th ? c ll . i ; ja » . r » 'tis m ^ dtr *^ t ^^ i ^ ctjons fre « from ritienc ? , ; he GDvercment » liewed tieta to ct oa usmoleetec . Thpy h » d now proceeded to incendixry iiEfiuge ixd to rcch Tiolent feels , aiid thit isxguafe » nJ tix&e doctrines karing been realised at Afcht « a tj 'J&t bansirgof * factory , il » b « ia ! j >?« : i > lh « t it conid be allowed lorx'T t « tolwate the vi-y . CEt deed * « f Mr . Stephga * n > d hi * feliowera . " - Kow , g&tleEBea , fiell the Hon . Fox Manle , and with him the Learutd and Hon . Attorney-Gr-nera ) , that when language is employed according to h : s laying down of the law , having a direct and recestary , and , as he sajf > an inevitable tendency to lead to acH of Tiolence ; 1 tell them that it ia the duty of her Majesty ' * Governmrat—that her Maiestv ' s

    Government would be most culpable and uaworthy of her confidence if they did not act upon that duty to prosecute ths reffisn who i ^ ad thu * cot only cctraged public decency , but had held up til tUe 1 & ^ *» and all tha safeguards of persons and property , to thii species of OBBteaipt , nay , according to their account , had - £ tee so far as to excite the people to destroy tie property and to endanger the lives cf her Majesty ' s peaceable subject * . It would be highly culpable in me were 1 not to bring before your notice expressions which are said to have failea from the lip ? , not of an icdindual in the heat of public d-bate in a distant pla : e from from the scene—from the lip ? not of an individual collecting his information aad receiving the unctnre evidence

    dim opinions and prejudices from hearsay and fr ^ m common rLinour , but fafliag from the hps of a gentleman of station , equal to that of your o » n intelligence too—a man whose sdtuation and u . tlJigence have been considered worthy to place him on the magisterial bench—a gentleman , my Lord , who , at the period of my first arrest , was one of my Judges , and who in the interval of my first asa second examination , to which I was subjected at Manchester , in the interval of these proceeding * pendm * the investigation upon which my liberty and character , deader tLau libtrty , ^ as dependingthat Gentii man it reported to Lave gives uucrance to the following expre . * slon ? , and with being charge with the ntrerazce of tbe .- ^ sentimenu without evic

    taking any st pg to deay them . This wasfct apuiv lic dinner at Hvde . en the 31 st December , I hav Eg been arresy ^ doiitie 2 / " th of Deceinb : r , and huvip ? to appear 5 guin at tie New BaLLev , 1 think oa tLe 2 nd of Jas * ary . la the interval " between the two ei . 2 . ti : Tiatioiis , t ' als gentlt-iDiiE , one of my Ju ^ g—) at tii * . to me , rao « 5 critical period , ii r ?? urtedt- ^ to have delivered hirtssif at a public medU ^ c ia l ^ j Tery toT ? n vh re tbi * pro .-fcttijn b : > iinanat ^ a—p & ? verv tovrn , en wh : < £ - Baz . ch . of Justices , houin tb « habii cf rif . i ;; g—Capiaia Ciirke , e-e ol tte Hyde I "> IagisUatei saiv . — "TLrjetrki b » ixat Lis-.-L " : a li .-cYraLd —» o ^ -n goi ^ *^ at £ .. \ rii-j : lie seeda ' ot ^ iis-n iu iha isiais o fao »? v . l-ciii ^ , - « deceive _ " He ussd to c m > * doui ia the tiflias gnne bv

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    in the emvi ^ le char » et « r a \ V « ilevi » Metb . « diit : bnt that wily thewed tVem -. Lit the devil himrelf might corns before ttem m the gwb of a Christian MinUter . There ivera people wlio thoug ht ike mim wit lineete , bul he wn ' id n « t lor kb uie be n » Ede to believe it . If he wer « tr . Uinj ? the tmta , then low did it happen tkat th <> same partiis L-elicved kia to be telling th 3 tmai now ? Cenuiiily it iva * trte Ihul Jis lo ^ lc U Bi * mtcuraed hxnto the book of Goa , » nl it wu equally true tn * t h » sdeeted passage ! with th « riew of aiding Li » wicked parpose . Certainly it wag a fact now too p ' . &in to be ouxonaentooa that he " h » d cotnuelied Kia deluded followers to destroy fictoritt , » nd born down cotUpe * in th » t cUtrict , \ miaysutLey eould fancy ; and tij » Kith the Bible before Now , gaid the Captain , imitating tlie example of Qtiintis 8 CarRns : — ^ fiBs ^^ rK ttro « ^»»^^^'>» Sd . » trffi We te made to believe it . if haw « -. ^ liwih-tmth . th »»

    M If the life <¦{ % Jellow-ereatnre were » 11 tb . it wretched ma » want » d , i * a > i would spire tie cottage * of the peaceful 0 fr >« r » tiTe » , md u > » Ucw lt » em quistly t » fo-niih food for theii « vei g . t . 3 children— if bt ? Wfu ! i be s » : i ^ nl ¦ d r ^ ith one kf *—if tbe BacriSe * of one airR > life enuld rt » tore ptj » ce , comfort , and htppicec * in the Cslrict , bia Uie coald not fall in a b « tter cause , " placing his band upon bi » left breast , amid long and continued cheering . Gentlemen , I put it to yon whether asy man can have a lair trial under circumstances of this description . If the mejristraces of Hyde—and where is Captain Clarke- on the

    present oc ;** ion r Where is Mr . Howard , another ma ? i « ttrat <" , and recently a friejvl of mine ? Where i « M r . Athton , who has sent his son to reprsgent him ? Where are the magistrates and the legal guardian * of the peace and tranquillity of that district ? If I hfvi been a man of that description , eo doubt you wou'd hav = > had those men in that box today ; bat for certain reasons those gentJemcn have kept away , and yoa have ocly had such individuals as the * - vrko appeared ia that box . My Lord , Parliament as ^ mbled in the month of February last , a little betu-r than a month sifter my arreM , and the Qoeen from tie thr ^ no wa « made to give utterance to tkp following sentiments : —

    leave ob » erT ^ d n pain r ^ rse ^ frmj ; > - ' that bare bs ^ u m ^ de in » oa : e j trts of tne coufiiJ" ) ' in txcitetuy nbjecu te d » fbfdi ! . r » efl sod rc ^ htsnje to the l » w » , ud to reeomiO 4 D-3 JxEc ^ rr > n * ani illesaJ practio' -m . Fur the counter-. ira . ja tf ? , \\ g ' uch 3 tr » if * s , 1 depend Dion the vUungtn ef tt « Ktt « kirb it wui be my dnty to en ' oi < -e u-, en tb . e g *~ & * eu » - » Ba ripbt £ ispo « , riun of ra ' y fter'lr ; aud uydn the attaciiaeiit to the pnocis ' ie * of jitiUce aad iteir abhorrence of T » lea « e and discrdtr . ' - . " *' I should Rot have re&i that paragraph to the jury in the ^ opposition tiat srcK an humolo individual a * mjre'd cocld have crawn down the salemn anger of t ' oe raonarch of thes * realm ? , wore it not

    contended in the debate en that occasion that the rnemben oi both . Houses of Parli ^ men ; disunctly uiJiTitood that 1 waa one of the iDdiviJuJs , at l ^ ss : iLui pointed out in herMejeaty ' s ! address . My Loid , fdilmg in this sygU ? maac and pers » verinx misreprrscntatiLii of my principles and motives and likewise of the stats of the district in . which I re .-ide , I nod in tb . 9 report—the first report of the Police Constabulary Commissioners , very appropriately signed by Mr . Chadwick , Mr . Shaw ' Lefevre , brother of the Poor Law Coinmi . * 4 oner , and by James Chadwick , secretary to the Board of Poor Law

    Commisiionc-rs , tee following ; paragraph . It is in page 157 of ihat report : — Here the paragraph waa read by the Rev . Defendant . GeEtlemen , what effects can this document kave npon your nsinds . or even apon the minds oi persons prepossessed in Uvour of ihe > prisoner before you ? Why , Gentlemen , if ay own father were in that box , whose principles I have imbibed , I should maiatain that it was impossible , in the nature of things , even from rcy own brother and father , to be in the kabit of reading paragraphs of this description , not to entertain a strong prejudice against me . Why , Gentlemen , you have seen no reluctance on the part of witnesses to appear in tbat box . You have seen of

    no hesitation on tie part of ^ entiecten property . Yon have had none but gentlemen of property m the box to-day . Yoa have had no labouring men , no shopkeepers , no tradei'inen . You have had none in tL © middle rank * of life , apart from two families who are more or less interested witnrsses on this occ&sicn ; yetycu are to be told such is the dreadsuch is the fearful alarm and state of apprehension existing in ths minds of men , that even gentlemen in her Mpjesry ' g Commission of the Peace would not jriv » eriti * nc « " , except on conditian that their name ? should b-t ? -withheld . 1 do > not wonder at thin ! All that is wished is for Ute information to go forward to the world wiihoctacv indorsement on the back ef

    if , or anybody to become re . 'por . siblft for the consequences it iuvoiTes . brcau . «> th * incmpnt that any ropoc .-ibiiity appear' , then all alarm vaniih ? . « , even from the ¦ v ? itDe- > es thene ^ elvf *? . noi one of whom k :-. s tia ' ed that he felt alarmed , evrn upon the occasion of that mee ' . ing . I w . ll ouly tronbia your Lerdrkip -with amrb- r extracr , ¦ W bici I brirJ 2 forward aleLg with the re ; r , dimply fo : tLr * purpo ^ cf remennjr prfj u iice from the mindi of the J crv , buf , though l ^ t of all of th ? m , it iy , my L > ri , by far the most impo .-tarit ; all-ow me to ad . 5 , wuh all ' coolceM , the mast malig-Eaiit . Yon . my Lord , are awtre tl-. at 1 f = tand here prosecuted at the instance of her Majesty ' s G : vcrcraent ; thxt comKiunicatioo ? of roypr < : c"edirii ? shave been s : sde to the Home-office—communications

    which specia ' . iy ivent to show the share 1 have had in what they have be ? a plei'ed to term an n ^ iiatien , vrbich has oT hi object the destruction of li e acd property . Yon vriil be . astoi . isLed when I te }] you tLa . 1 I am about to read an extract from n sjv-ech trcm the a : tual f ; ro ^ ecutcr in ths ca .. * e , frornan inciviccsal ¦ n iiospcfi ' icf and thecharatter in which sttauds the cocildeEce of the Crown , I am sorry 1 cannot add in tke corfid ^ nce of tke country , onght to have raised himsrlf infinitely above any such attempt hs th s to put me down by a cide b ' ofr of tliis nature . 1 am aooct to show you . Ger . tlemeD , it way not fuffitient tba : this p ' ro'ecotion wan as irregular cpon ttp very face of ^ as it wes uncon . * tirational in its prcct-dare : it was Hot sufficient that the public prejudice j ' aoula be thu * incited aga . ii . st roe % the press

    in the pay of the Government , and by many of the members of that Government themselves , vj , ? ue ad tuiusevm ; attacking my character in every possible w&y , and exprticg every " effort to render me obnoxionn to the communiiy ; it was not sufficient that the ordinary course of the bar should be departed Irom , that the talent and learning of the Attorney-General for the county shculi be pass ? d by , and that her Majesty ' s Attorney-General should come down purposely to condnc : this prosecution Bjjainet me , simplv 1 ' cr tb-3 purpose of ' ¦ vindicating the low ; " a . l th » was not » -fficient , Gentlemen ; bit , on the very eve © f th- ^ e assiz- ? ' ' , i = d I prx-ccme after you had received your sumxo&ses to attend at this Court 4 i well and trulv to try , and an honest and conscientious verdict tc dve in these israe . s" yon , Gentlemen , in

    the habit of reading important Parliamentary debates , sre to have pas .-age ? of this kind laid before you , purporting to fall Irom Lord John Russ-. O ) , a witness in this ca « e : — H = re the R ? v . Gentleman read from a paper a recent speech of the little Lord ' s . My Lord , 1 will add nothing fnnher oe tbat head , and in that shape . Most cl ^ ar , indeed , is it that no verdict can be obtained ia a court of justice unless means like tho .-e I have jnst laid before yon had been resorted to . Yon perceive , GemleaeD , tha' for to htig- as two years ago , up to the present hour , no ; only th ? pablic prt si , but members of her Msje-ty ' .- - gf-vernraent , aye , and even that member of her Majesty ' * govemrr-eat at -xhoss instaccfl I am preseenrt-d to-say , are reported to h * ve done every thirg in tijrir po ^ er ,

    by prejudicing the minds of the country r . t b . rgo , and EJ jury in particular , to prevent t-rc . i- ; h ^ njurai p- > ffibiii : y of my having a fair and impaniil trial . Gentlemen , no ca . s j of sedition has y ^ t been made out , or the use of my seditions jangtatft' been proved . It is highly iaponant , and I will add th ^ t iuionogt instances , my Lord , it is absolutely n ° t »/ sr . ry 7 * and ought to be a fundamental question vith the jac-ge and jury , isine qua mm wita the prosecution , tha . t every means within lie compass of reasonable possibility had been and"were resorted to for the p _ urposa of bringing the supposed cff . ncer to jnstice . You have been told , my lord , by feer Majesty * secretary of state , that reporters cuuld not be called , to give evidence , as they generally attended m ** tin * cu sufferance . Why , if they could net be

    , called who could be called—vho i ? to be called ? 1 need not t-11 your Lordihip r-ow exceedingly dunculc it is , even in matters of corosaon importancematt-rs cf the most trivial moment , how difficult it is for us to carry ** way a correct impression of tha which hEs been coiamua icated to us . If we fend this difficulty in ordinary occasions , if ^ e find H necessary in mere matters of business to haye recourse to a memorandum book , or some artificial mode of refreshing cur memories , how much more in f . uch a case as this , irj which your Lordship well knows that the omi-sion of a single -word , or the alteration of a single word , or even the omisflon of a single point or c : mma might reverse the whole of what was said ; how much more wtw it nectary to have

    scmo ccmp = tent authority—some credible aid undoubted testimony on which a jury and CouTt could relv . And aro the liberties aod tae lives of Eaghshme ' n to hang ^ spended by a slender thread of evidencf , similar to that which has Keen Drought Jnto that box ? Are persons who leli you that thry vrere a littla elevated , but not so drunk that thry could not w ^ lk upright to the meeting ¦ are tho « 3 the pewen- from wbosna verdict , to -tit the little Government of a ^ reac nation , is to be ' derived : U the evidence oi a person to be taken who tell- * vou that he distinctly recollects all

    the rnbbkhin an address about knights , bannerkn abts . fagkmen , powder-monkeys , and all the Sr- of it ; w evidence ^ o got off iron , hand to head fvV-it -s fixed upon an unmoveabla basi * , that it refc-es w be - -aakc-n br ail cToi . -exnminanon . . , Dnv ^ ir 2 even in a letter , even to tbe « maU « t SSicfof . peecli - .-iiO , Gentle . iiPD , that eud . tce ?" ; - Qr > .- m ? 'e to rarv a * ngb hair s jreadth ; c * . . M : * V .. ™ ' rerlnlhn it literatim . vi : hout one f . V "' : " ? o i " dilfcr . ; : ' . c ? , abont tnighu and banner-J ir f r '"' B-d - ^ r-monkevr , aad t . i : iio re * , ol

    r , pow ¦ ¦ V --vTkv- -tl ^ -k ed hi =-i « r . ;' -t 1 ^ . a w a . y u ; DJ " , ^ . r * U * v-. , in ary interlocutory p-i ^ -. gf-, ^ - tr 7 t --J- *?** ^''' V ' k-s-ro- ' -c : li-etiop , h > .-c-iuDo : be •' ' • ¦ V- "' ' 1 V ^ - ^ - 'F-m-iae ! .: 1 a . ked hu . ! ., ! brought - it . otf , to v-Q-v i-

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    what it wm tending , the moment I ask him on what term « , on what conditions , ia whut way these words are mi to hate been used , "« on mi ricordo . " he cannot remember a siagle sentence . No , Gentlemen , kis miad is blank and his lip g are sealed the moment I put it to him as to those things which he had heard at the meeting , but which had not baen drilled into him by this prosecution . This man ; mark it distinctly ; it is worthy of your observation ; this man with whom I had been o . i terms of intimacy ; this man who knew me tu be on terms of friendship ia that teighbourhpud with a mtMriitrntP , until I took up the cause of the little factory piecere , thirteen years of age ; this witness , ti . e moment I ask , knowing that he has been acquainted with the lace , knowing that he has met me at private tables ; the moment ! ask him , knowing that he hnsseen me with gentlemen of property in that district ; tha moment I a * k him whetW ho ever hpard me a «^ i to have been used , » non J ricordo . " he cannot remember a marie sentence No . fi ^ ntle-

    give ranco to anything Uwing a tendency to the destroctioa of propf Tij % in a moment , my Lord , without considering for a single mutant , ia the twinkling of an eye , without any hesitation , he exclsums , " yes , I do . " Gentlexen of the jury , remembtr that . And what is it wh ? n it comes out ? Yob heve heard how gUbly that witness could repeat the whole of it ; and yet *?? ° k up casually a paper from thlK table cjo-Uining a speech of Lord Brougham , in iho Houseof Lord ? , in which he represents me as using expressions precisely similar to those spoken of by the witness when I ask him to repeat those words , the aD " ^? he & ive 8 " « m P ^ th is . " It is impossible . Gentlemen , not to bo hard upon tho witness : I give him a latitude as wide es that I would wish for

    myself , and asked him to rep at to you the substance of that sentence—the meaning it contains . 1 asked him simply to give to you , having read it slowly and deliberatel y to him in your learicg , I a ^ ked him to give me the substance ouly of that senience , and he answers in memorable terra ? , memorable in these issues , and memorable , as 1 asa nur ^ it will be , in your verdict , he uuw ^ r * , "IT WOULD BE FOLLY TO ATTEMP T IT . " Nov .. grntlemen , I a * you whether that \ eknts < can bt > b Sieved ? 1 a ^ k you as moral agenfe , having minds siBular in faeir original elements , but most dissimilar I hops in their purposes and intentions with that of tho ^ witness ; I ask you , made as man Li m- > de , whether the testimony of that witness can be received in this court ? Ha can di ^ tiuctly r collect words which 1 am reported to have said full nin * monthi he

    ago ; takes no notes , he never writer Jo ? rn one ward , or m any way assists his memory for the purpose of canj-lng a distinct recoll-sction of thoie words , and seven months , alter tUe meeting has olapted he is called upon by the magistrates to give evidence ! He does not give that evidence voluntarily ; he does not even go at his own opportunity to give evidence against me as a dangerous r in ; but he is summoned two months a ^ o ; and mark it , Gentlemen , he was summoned at the moment when the Leigh indictment broke down , and the Crown found it unBdvuabls to tru * t such a case in the handi of a British jury ; and when the whole of these transactions were ( o be transferred from Lancaster to Cheshire , when the whole of this case is to have a perversion given to it which I am sure you will mark

    with your strongest disapprobation , this man u summoned to giw evidence under these circumstances , and at the period of " months after the meeting hod transpired !! 1 kave now read to him a few seatence * , and he says it would be folly to attemp t togive you the substance , used by Lori Brougham , and said to have been uttered by him . His auawer L < , on being asked to give the substance of tkat seatence , No : it would bc folly to attemi't it . " Gentlemen , the whole of this evidence has been of the same description precisely as it was in tha ca ^ e brought from th- town of L ? i h . Witnesses can remember tbis , bot they cacnot remember that . They can bring into Court a gn-at deal nbout " powder monkeys ? jid " bannsr-men , " and " teTrch-ukeu , " and "leading them on , " ar , d '' rising up atn : ed" and * 'readv

    , and prepared , " and " being in the possession oi arms cf defence . " All ibis thry can distinctly recollect ; but the occasion , the cause , meaning , the drifr , and intention of tha whole , snppojing it to Lave been said , are very conveniently obliterated from tkf recollection of thesi wim-ises . Gentlemen , I put it to you whether , as reasonable men , you can give n verdict fairly of guilty on this indictment , sustained as it is by tie evidence of the men wbo have appeared in thru box . If , my Lord , this na * l been a _ ample cast of -. tt . T . ding an ilWdl meeting of this description , I am vj -rysure your time woLld n ; t Lave bean taken up with this ca . « e ia tbis Co ;; rt . You . Gentleiam of tho Jury , would net

    ha % * beea dragR ^ d , tbo o . e froia hin rnercb&ndiz ? , the oiber from bi » mis . ioa , ani nno ;! : er from those h . me . 4 s _ which y- - u ought to bo gst ' inring ir , to examine into thu ca . « t > . Nv ., ( ienil men . ih-ro is . ¦ something of which you ought to bo fully informed . 1 have rione my best to pu : yon in po * . es « ioa of a pa : tofit . One of the oust m aerial witaegue . M ia this cb 5 . ' , and the Attorney . General , ¦ who conducts this w * c , well knovr * it , aid whose n . tm < j eiands on lae baci of tho bill of indictment—tb » t witnessit not here . By the word her , 1 do not mean that he is not in Lavca-thirp , or that ha u ont of CLfster ; no , he is here ; bs is in this coart ; and tLat i » no other thun Mr . ( Jhcrlton , the Attorney , * ho has Lad the conduciiug cf this pr ^ rcation .

    ATToaxEY-GcxEi' . AL—I * 8 < not . vvrare lii * name ! wa * un the back ft" tht- bill of indicimont ; but if Mr . S ; ephens wishes him to b * put into th : « box , I shall immediately pr » sent Lim . Mr . Stephens—My Lord , I think it is hardly likely , with the wkole o { vhis leial array Rgaicscme , and having to go through all tbis mass of jerious dntj-, and each of tho geutlfimen who have had the management of this case being entrusted to his owa share of it , and no more than bin own share of it , 1 cauROt ttiinx that this witneiw has been unintentionally omitted . It would be very much o « t of order now to call for that witness beirjg put into that ) ox . If he had been pnt into that bvx , he might have told yon that from the ftrm of which he is » partner , and clerk to the magistrates there , has

    issued a document tending to create alarm in this city—tending to fill your icinds fall of prejudiceprejudice f xisting to that extent , that when 1 came into tKe tovrn 1 could not even be allowed to sit a f * w moments in t > ae commercial room of one of the hotels of this ciry ; tot throogk any ill will of the landlord , who was mest polite and courtroae to me , bat because he told rae toat i should t > e so annoyed by llie coaipaty that Jreqoented the house , that for my own sake , rather than for his , he bejrged I would relieve him of my pre < t > nc ^> . Preju iice existing to that extent , that when yesterday I was sheltering my » elf under one of toe arcades ot your ancient city , 1 saw two waggons laden with rnnnkett- , and a group of geatl ^ men who were standing iu tb . 3 same place where I stood , making their remarks

    on the 'bloody conspirators" s » yi . g " ttusy ought to be hanged without Judge or Jury , " declaring that thi . < was " s inure cf arms belonging to the rebel * againsi the peace of osr Sovereign Lady the Oaeen ;' and when I soggested that they could not De arms of that l ; iui . I found myseif wry soon required to relieve them of my company , for I wa * attacked by name , and oueot them said " that i «< Stephen ? , who is worse than all the reBt of the agitators put together , " and that "if he were upon the Jury , te would take care that a verdict of gpilty should be brought in against me at all ri . 'ks and hazards . " I ouly mention tUisto show that the prejudices arising frorn&Ll these circumstances , ai . d irom tbat placard —that foal , that malicious placard which is posted upon tha wa : li—I mention thi * in order that I mav

    tell yob , that when _ on Monday 1 left the nwghbourh- od where I reside no neighbourhood ould be mure peaceful ; and I m » y also mention , that having lived ia th :. t nc-igabourhcod s ^ vea year ? , and constantly officiating a-. nong ; t the poorest classes of th 3 people froai timo to time , there never bas b ; ea since into that neighbourhood I came , and up to the termination of tho ins : itution ,. this prosecution against me—there nsver has been , at any oaa meeting that ever I was at , on arjy cno occa : ion , in which 1 had the shadow of ashore—there never has been a H .-. gle iaftinco of & vipUtioa of public property there never haa beea a single instance of a breach of the peace . The morals of the people have been amended rather than deteriorated ; their habits haw

    become more domestic— and 1 am glad to sea their political principles becoming co £ « titutional , and their religious principles more fixed and devout . This has been my aim , and this being known and read of all men , in the district from which 1 come . 1 am dragged her * -, my Lord , under tbis legal mask , tor it is not the true lace of the prosecutor , —this he has not dared to exhibit in this court , — " bat under this mask alone , as though I were a party to the Convention , and to the disturbances of Birmingham , the Chtirter , to Annual Parliaments , Vote by Ballot , Universal Suffrage , and all tao rest ef that rigmarole , in which 1 nsver had a share . I only came forward to the men of Leigh , and there declared rny detestation of the doctrines of Chartism , declared that if Radicals were ia power , my views were such that my heEd would be brought first to iho block , and my blood would be the

    rirjt blood that would have to fl ^ w for the olden liberties ol the country . Gentlemen , this Is the individuttl vrho is brougut before you on tha present occasion as a chartist , and his proceedings mada co appear as though re was identified with all that has taken , place initiiscouutry . The learned Attorney-General toll you and this Court that ha did net ict ^ ad to make auy statcitjer . ti ! p . s io the recent occurrences ia tiiii country . The ; Jlusiou was sufficient ; the intendo was thought b y Lira to be eriongh to connect and idomify me "fti ; u this . As I said be orf , i : I am tc bu trie i . let n ; e ha tried hi my owa pers on , acd not in ih-3 pjrson of Chartism , ct ' liadicali .-:::, to . cb ii ^ ht a « dD ., cr thi ^^ s of that kiud . If I a-. u t-j ]) .- r-ie-i , ;;> : : ne tiied upon my own opui ? E ;—jp u my o . % n pri ^ cipl s— ; : pon ; . v own a ; r . Lorised a"J pul-iisLc-d C-jCUiueii ' S ; let ri e be tried up-c uij ^> ihizi- ^ r a w Lic ! i tiiero can be 1 . 0

    :-. tu opjuiou-- . :. ; : !' . i . s to > = r , j U tJ the idfiiti'y of tsr _ fti-1 , h . v . o . < ¦¦" . ¦ Cn- i : ; e ;' . i ' ri !> j of ta ? c-: ; , ir , vsic-ii 3 to Vfiiio-i i Miv . ^ v ..-ji uitsrar ; Cj . G .-iitk-iiiei :, Ihoue

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    by your verdict you will gire the Attorney-General to anderstan ^ that he may go back to the Homeoffice , and tell Lord John Rnssell that the birthnghw of fjiglighmen are not to be broken down , and crushed and destroyed . Genttanen , a few years - go it wan the object of tkis Government to introduce an entire change ia nil the ancient instititioiis of tke country , no far as tliose institutiona affected the welfare and government of your own parishes , the treatment of jour own poor , the children and tha relative of your own poor » eLjhpour 8 , and often the relatives of y our own families ; and how was this to be accompluhed ? Not openly and honourably , as would have been the case if . their cansa had been good—if there had boen a true and suffioffice , and tell Lord JS 2 ? WU tt ^ L biX ri ^ hw of Enirliahmrtn . r « T , « V T « iL ' wTX ^ . ? 7-Z

    cient reason for introducing that measure . No , Gentlemen , it wag that by that means that the poor of the country might b » crnshed : that by that measure the freedom cf the subject mi Kht be destroyed ; that by that measure the poor mijrht be brought to disgrace , bo reduced to starvation , nnd subjected to impnsonmout and death . Ia order to accomplish all this , it was necessary th ' av . the character of the poor man should be destroyed , and hence it was that you had a reform administration ; a liberal Governmeut ; a Brougham cooing forward in the Houst . of Lords to declare , not to their Lordship' judgment , but to Uieir feara : to tell tbeir Lordehips that unless this Poor Law were passed they could not expect their property to bo t £ cure :

    that the estattja of their Lordships would be swallowed up unless they afflicted the poor with this measure . He represented the poor as being a set of idle , unprincipled individuals ; the men were idle and were drunkards , and the women were unchaste and wanting even in common virtue ; thus maligning the character of the poor ; thus misrepresenting the CR 88 of the poor , he led their Lordships in an unhappy hour , t j give their assent to tkat measure . A ad I mention this , in the way of illustration , to show that you have now a Government attempting to introduce another innovation , an innovation as bad ft ? the first ; a measure to consi gn tho peace , tho lib'rty , and the politics of this country to a constabulary force , centralised ia London , out ot tY \ e >

    hands and beyond the po * er of tha local authorities . And how ia this to be done but by traducing the charactar ot the people in those parts in which it is ina objoct of tn-3 Government to introduce this measure ? Hence you have it that tho districts are m a lawless state ; that they ore in a state ol disturbance ; that there is no peace , no secur ity ; that life it * elf is uot safe , and Utat the manufacturers and merchants cannot wieep ia their beds at night for fear of spcret assama&Lion and burning . AU this is done for the purpose of insinuating this measure upon the country ; and 1 do contend , that in » pito of tho whispers that I hear around me and by my side , that I am perfectly in order in bringing this matter before the Court , because if it had not been

    neceiaary to do these things , you would not have seen me here to-day . We have had a great deal of U , k about torch-light meeting *; why in the district where the factory labourer * work from before sonr . Be until after « . un-set , let the Attorney-General tell us when they have an opportunity of meeting . He has said the subjects of England may meet at proper times . Whan aro the factory lafcourers to me i I , wteB » " * the face so many intimidations , and of the attempts that have beea made to prevent them attending those meetings in the day , or when Uie whole of that district was under the pain of being dismissed from their employments , and subjected to criminal informations btfore the magistrates at the instance of those who scruple not to commit

    a breach of the peace themselves , when , i again ask , were those poor men to me-.-t ? lam here , my Lord , to plead;—I care little what may become of myself on this i ^ isue—of course 1 would much rather you would return me to my home , as 1 have no doubt you will—but had the Attorney-General a ca * e , and were he able to sustain that cose , I card less for myuelf than for the poor , on whose behalf I gtand here as a criminal at your bar . Gou-Uemen , tha people of that district were thus threatened—they were thus discharged . Now , Gentlemen , in all this array of legal jargon abont torchlight meetings , about buuuers , emblems , aad ensigns , and this , that , and the other , tho Hun . and Lenraed Attorney-General has not attemptud to has not

    saow you— dared to tell you—for he could not tell you chat mevtiegs of this kiad were not common in that place ; h * haa uot shewn you that this wt « an ordinary inuring , or that there was aay lutencion previously to excite fear or alarm . There isnoproot that I had auy part in the arrangement of that meetiog ; tliera is no proof that 1 had anything to do ia me getting- up or that meeting ; there is no prool that 1 had anything to do with tu * deliberations and decisions 01 that meeting ; but that pimply &i a mini * t « r of tkat neighbourhood , the inhabitants did me tua honor to invite me to nuend tiat uueting to delivor my opinions on certain great measures . If tl . ere h * d been any thing » o fearlul and terrific iu thi * lorcu-hght raseting , I am surj yoa

    would h w « heard ioinothiug more about it from taa Hon . and Learned Attomej -General . I tun sorry he lias J ust Hft the Court , for he might otherwise hav « main a note of it . If Us should take his right to reply he will have an opportuuity of Wiling you , on his own _ authority a . i a lawyer ; he will » mke his reputation on the matter , that torch-light meetings are not unlawiul j th . t there i . s no more ia a torch than there i * iu a iarthing caudle ; thatit is the ri ^ 'ht of an Em-lisliaaan to meet , if he choosr . " , to walk at the head of a torcU-li ^ ht me « -ticg . The Hon . and Lirarnei Attornry-Genorul will te 11 you that not onl y ore you entitled to carry ensigns and banner !' , but the Uligiea of obnoxious persons ; tkai if there should be a magistrate of the nanm ol

    Badger iu a neighbourhood , they vrere entitled to inakw a representation of a badger , to put m on a pole an i carry it past the hou *> of tbat gentleman whom I sea on the bench , and whose name may be Badger rather than Howard . The Htm . and Learned Attorney-General will tell you it ih perfectly lawful , if you have any political enmity against any political character , you may hoist a sign-board in the street , and thus insult that pnblic functionary , and that all this is perfectl y lawful , and within tke limits of the constitution . Oh , y * s with all this talk about firing chase pop-guns and these penny cannons , all the-te parading before you of firing of pistols on the 14 th of Novembsr , the Tj-eek aner the 5 th of November , when every body is off istols

    firing p in token or aad ia remembrance of the salvation of this country from a conspiracy far worse than that oao against the New Poor Law . which falls upon your ears like a tale upon the idle wind- * . There is nothing which the Attorney-General caa allege as to the time of the meeting so far as I had to do with it , which can constitute that meeting unlawful . Then , Gentlemen , there is the enaecessary parade of law authority oh tbis occasion , what doa * it amount to ? It amounts simply to this , ttiat no Eian—that no body of men , nave any right to terrify and al * Tm others , to giva them any such grounds for terror and alarm . Have th « wime « se * wuietbd you tkat tt ^ y were alarmed ? In ray cross-examination I mud many

    mistakes , but I got rather too much out of tho witnesses . I say , Gentlemen , are your niin . Ui entitled even out of the mouths of these witnesses taar th <> re was any terror and alarm ? Hero you have men going to the Snipe Tavern , others to the Sportsman ' s Jnn , and taking their glass ; you have them corting out of tha houie , atteudixig the meetia £ , approach tue hustings , stand within a few yards of the speaker * , and when the question is put to tht m one by on * , and one after another : —Were yon alarmed ? "No . " ^ Did you see any ground to fnel all this alarm r or did anybody else tell you they ten alarm ? "No . " Had you any reason to feel ground for alarm ? "No ; there was no fear . " One witness who came before yon was ouly a ' raid of * barn that

    was most miraculously preserved , because non « of the sparks get through the loop-holes . No , Gentlemen , thank God , they neither got through the loop-hotes or any other way—so guarded were those midnight incendiaries , as they have been repregsnted to you , lest any harm should have happened to property in that neighbourhood , that whdn they came nD to a ^ weggoa laden Tfith sttfcw , near to the null ot Mr . Ihomas Ashton , the men walked oa the opposite side with their torches , and placed a guard tor the protection of tho waggon . The witnesses , too , haje stated that the procewioa passed in order , and for anything I know that waggon may be standing there yet , to induce another prosecution of tbis malignant and vindictive kind . Geatl-men , there never was in tho annals of

    this country a more uafair , a more cowardly prosecution than this . As I said before to yon , my opinions are bafore the world . I have lighted a toich , pet a _ literal , bnt a figurative one , which , by GodV blessing , will blaz \ and which all the waters oht of this cistern cancot extinguish . I have taught the people to fear God and honour the Queeu , but I have taught them to hate everything that is unconstitutional and anti-Christian . I have told them to take the book of God in thtir right hand , and the book of our law * in tho left hand ; to have the fcar of Gcd at their side , the love of God and their neighbour in their heart ; and than to walk abroad UDnght and fearless of Attorney-Generals , and all tie awful race of property law prosecutors . Yet , Gentlemen , there was a

    banner" tor child and for wife We will war to the ksife . " Gentlemen , weald not yon , every man of you , adopt that banner : Is there a mau of you in that box who would not war to the knife far child and for wife ? That , Gentlemen , is the head and grouad of my p flenco . I Lave toll the people ^ En ^ land tbat , by lav ? , their wives cannot , and their children cannot , l < i taicn from them . I have told the people tk-at , by lavr , tacy have a rigat to their own homesteads ; Ihat tbiw hr-. tv ii right to their own fire-sides ; that iho y ^ . -. tv .. . a nght is meir earnings alter their i : iboi : r ^; w ueeu i-i'LcsUy ; uid fiiti-. fuUy done ; a ri"ht to tb .: ir comicrts -sir . ch their kWjr ought to procsra tor wm tu society , for their little one * , and ijr that riucT

    pi . u w :: otrj u ? y j . av ,-, be on bound , and whom tueyi .-v s-. voni b-fjro God never to d ^ rt , but to r . vj tegctaer r > r ; iil de .-. t ! . do them part . I have told me t'SOiiit ) of tais-country that any thing vfhicb . uro-

    Untitled Article

    fegges to overthrow the insliiotion oi Leavm is u ' oi a taw Mcordini to owe conirtitation , and canaot be held u > b » a Jaw in any court of British jurisprudence , and cannot be expected to ba obeved by any party , except the party holding power . Gentlemen , if it be better to obe y man rather than G > d , judge ye . As I have told the peogle everywhere to judge if ?*} mi V . ' aPon what « e precepts of the word ot God enj » m , every principle of right which the conatitniioa of our country guarantees toug , I am dknftojndfp ; and if I have offender ] , thow me wnerein—show me how and at what time ; asd then I will give myself up to thi « verdict of , the law , and then the Honourable and Learned Attorfley-General shall have m « s in his own hands—he shall be at once Lrid ^ e a ^ w in ^^^^' B ^ if ?^ be ? * " » »* » p any court of BnUsh jurkpru-

    both Judge and Jury , and Executioner . * 1 will not « sk him to put me throngh thw process—I will not a « k him to give mo this chance of escape—I will not a 3 k him hoT it is that I shoulm be compelled to appa&r ia this awful and sacred presence . No , Gentlemen , but until I am thus treated—until I am thus tried—until I am thus found guilty , I will hold that every thing of this kind , ia a mere specious ' , and not even sufficiently plausible to lead your minds to believe it to be Btich—a mere specious attempt on tho part of the Government that has thought n . e worthy of their direct persecution ; and should eren , uJ > an aloffal point , a verdict be given against me , I should still contend that I have been condemned unjustly , because 1 have not been condemned nnnn

    ine real charge which these partiee have against me . 1 can sho * you , Gentlemen , that I am utteriy incapable of the motives that have been attributed to *?*• t , " would at fort S'gkt appear snrpricing that tli © Honourable and Learned Attorney-General , m the discharge of this dnty of * ' vindicating the law" at Chester , did not remind you of the fact , and endeavour to imprens it fully upon your minds , that it is the intention or motive that constituted the essence and the gravamen of all crime , that wi . hout a crimi * al motive , there cannot be a criminal act . I may be a . madrnan , gentlemen —as I have beeH « aid to be , until my opinions gained such hold of tfce people , both rich ar , d poor , until , my principles began to uke roit in the

    minds j ){ the people both rich and poor-and until something like influence arising out of the extension and extablishment of those opinions and principles began to surround me—it was convenient , and all that was tKonght to be nt , jesaary by this party , to represent me a 9 a madman—Gentlemen , I may be a madman yet ; bnt if I am madmanj your verdict i « not guilty , for he wh » has not his mind uDder full controal , is incapable of committing a criminal act . I may have said rash word * , I may have uttered stranje opinions , and I may by possibility have been wrong ae to those opinions , and yet still , gentlemeD , even on this supposition , that in my full ordinary sense I have said harsh wordy , and Riveu utterance to strange opinion * , the Attorney-General has omitted , in conducting this prosecution

    , the most essential and most important part of hi » doty . It wag the duty of the Attorney-General to have ghewn you—to have satisfied you that I was a man having a nmtut anmus—that I was a bad man—that I hacT in my heart bad feelings—that I hated the men against whom I am said to have spoken—and that I wished for and compas-ed the destruction of their peace , their property , and their lives . The Attorney-General sheuld no : only have satisfied yon—he should not only have shewn this to a certain extent , but he shoald have shewn this so completely as to have satisfied your minds as to that part of the question . But how is the case conducted by the Attorney-General , and how stands it at present ? Why , Gentlemen , y « u have the language of onstable ?

    c , who have been convicted before the Magistrates for striking perfons , and who do not conh . Jer tbat to be any breach of the peace ; and this man telli jou that he has betn fined bv the Magistrates for having committed asnaults on individual ? , but he does not consider that anj offence at all . Well , on the oath of this constable you have a long thread about where the precession begun and where it ended , he being there . You have map , and charta , and plana to give you every idea ol the situation of every foot of greund in the to vn-? hip , and yet with all tbis about " proeessioim , " and " pop-guns craetinf ? , " and " torches and banners , " and "fire-pot-, " and "ensi gn * and Hags , " and displays of various kinds—and every wi : ne ^ s ia made to utate and insist on thia—to be rao ?* c rninute and

    most particular ia this— but not » word as tu the nten'icns of the defendant—not a word a 3 tothe motives—not a eingle word or chadow of a word have you in evidtnea—not a single word can you have in evidence as to the intentions of the defendmt iificg of the description mentioned in that indictment . 1 will ai-k , Gentlemen , in \ vhatwny areyouto arrive at the knowledge of the motives ot par ; ieo ? I have read to you , Gectlemen , for the purpose of disabusing your minds of tbe prejudices against mo , Ibe speeeh of the Secretary of State for the Home Dep » rtnienr , in which ho declares that out of my printed botkrfl rejommended assassination and the destruction of property ; in which h * nays that I ha * e mattd , thnt under tbe Po . , Law Amendment Act , and other law a , the cotum ^ nds of ( 1 OD that " thou > -halt not steal" and *• thou shah

    not till are pu * pi'nded , and of no force or obligation . Noa ' , GdutJemen , how stands this argument —in what way is the argument really put H What were the link * of the chain in that argument it in for vo j to kiiow , it i * for you to understand—yonr mi no ' s caHuot be cisabu « ed of the pr » judices that have waited to fill them unless joa know in what terms and ia what way the argument is put which Lord J . hj > Ruasell sajs goes for thedes ' rucrionof life aad property . YouRiiall have them , GeHtlemen ; I will give you evtry opportunity of learning the motives and intentions of the defendant , acd then if you relieve this defendant to be capable of inciting to destruotioa of property and life , I will give your minds rhe full latitude and ample sweep of the whole of my public character and career . I will give your mind ' s the full benstit of all tVe prejudice that I know has been impr 9 s «« d upon themit' you canafter you hear

    , , the manner in which this argumeat is put , believe that I have urged , in any other way than a coastitutional Englishman has a right to do , and as a humble Chrwnan minister is bound before God to do , —and then , Gentlemen , without turning your heads for a mement—without giving the Attorney-General the trouble of a reply , I give you my lull consent at once to pronounce a verdict of gui ty and let me bear th * penalty which 1 ought to bear the penalty any man ought to bear when ke interferes with the light of his brothei and his neighbour . Er < kine has well observed , that it is tke intention or rmtive that constitutes the offtnee . The - criminal intentiou stands at the top of every page of criminal jurisprudence . When you turn over the leaves of th « 8 e law books , and see the classification of offence * , whetbsr it be theft , or murder , you are to presuppose written over that word the intention of

    the't—the intention of murder , or malice aforethought . Henc « , in our old forms of indictment , persons are charged with , not having the fear of Gcd before their eyes , but being under instigation by the devi ! . Gendemen , 1 love those old forms , because they are- to the spirit of the law what tho bouy of man in to the soul . I love those old words ; yet it may be Jashionabl * to laugh at the existence of the devil ; it maybe fashionable to reason away the pereonality ot the great Father of ah life . I am a simple matt— I take the Bible as I find it—I read it as it stands—I believe that God is , aud that there is a devil—that these is a hereafter—a ^ eaven and a beU , ; and therefore I love those old forms and terms ia our indictments—I love to seeand I hope that

    , tbe spirit of the age , the march of intellect , the Strides our improvements are making , will not sweep away all those forms , and leave ua to tha principles of Mabcus , and the Poor Law Amendment Aor . You must have ii then in proof , that I have tUis matus animus—Ihvt I entertain these hateful and hellish feelings to my neighbour . You will recollect that our law ft on tMs point , as well , as on every other material point , are held as based upon the authorities laid down by the VVord ef God , a » to all moral actions , and as to ail moral responsibility . Gentlemen , 1 do not hold that the character oi a man is tormed for him and not by him—I hold that man is an agent iu se and per se , not oaly responsible for the outward deed , buc for the inward

    the unknown , the untold , desire , disposition , and feeling . The principle is laid down , and it U a most beautifal principle , in the epistle <> f St . James , 4 i-Let no man say I am tempted of God ' . " aud why not ? Is not God the maker of all men and the author of all things ? and is he not therefore , as false philosophers have argued , the author of evil alao ? and are we not eximpt from responsibility on that account ? No , Gentlemen , this may be philosophy , but it is not reason ; it may be liberalism , but it il not Christianity . It is not ths religiou wkich . 50 a and I profess ; which you , Gentlemen of the Jury I trust , hang your hopes upon ; by whose principles you are guided , and in accordance with the maxims of which your verdict will da civea . A man L .

    rot to bohev » that he n tempted of God ,, aud is not to be believed d he nays « o—for " God tompteth no mnn . Wfcy . ' How tun is a man tempted to the cojwr . is * ioa of enmu r livery maa is fc . rapted whes lw is drav . u aside by his own lust . H ^ re you h&ve the inward vr ^ h-y-. c will—tbere is the lust ; lust leads to sin ; wben lust h . \ th conceived it b : isgeth forth sin , nnd whsu sin i .- iinished , it brxgftli iorth - 'eath—that is tbe sisspla , baautit ' ul , and f obiiine theory of moral nciio-i in its principle , in us progress , ia iti tcrii . maiion , ia its guilt , iiiiu aqwn in the iuspi : ed aad sacred v-ilumo ; andCkrlst , gentlemen , when g peals its : on the same subject says , " re'vearsiiip eu interprelUig Uie law , " aud I hope you will allow noiliiDg to put this out of

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    your mind * , and the re *§ ona founded upon that interpretation are the law npon which I am to he tried before you . The witnesses have sworn nj » on oath , and it it open that jaw I am to be judged to-day—Christ , then , explaining and illustrating' the atruo . tare nnd principk of ail law ; for human law , my Lord , i « only good when it is identical ia principli and spirit with law divine ; is alone worthy of our dmiration , is alone deserving of onr obedience , alone the object of our praise , alone worthy living under ; alone worth ; of-fighting ' - for ,-to defend it against all revolutionisfs ^ -Christ say * that even if wo hate our brother without a cause , we are a murderer . It is not enoBgh that we should kill another : a man may kill another by mistake : aman n » ^ etati ra ^ tbe J ? w npon v Which l «^«^« e 4 before tou . The witnesses hav e sworn n » oa oath .

    kill his child , or bis wife , or those that are dearer to J ™* Vi IO 1 OOO lives ; and to bring whom baek again nawonldlay down ten time * 10 , 000 lives if hehad tnem to give . A man mightkiil another maliciously with malice prepeme \ , aad in that case if angei could be proved he might b 9 brought ia guflty in a court of jostice ; and if ssch be the pnnapie laid down m divine revelation , and if such be the principle ia which onr law not only acquiesces , but which cur law haa adopted as theprinciple only upon which a true verdict can b » given between our Sovereign Lady the Queen , who in this instance represents the mej ? sty of Heaven , because « he is sworn to execute here , in tho person and through the medium of the Judge aad

    me court , not statutes and acts of Parliament only , because-they aie statutes end nets of Parliament , but because she has sworn to execute Jiere the lawi of God in justice and mercy . Gentlemen , you perceive then that in tie very nature of this offence , in the very nature of every offence , ycu are by som » how or other to arrive at the motive—you are by somf > how or other to find out the disposition , the intention of the individual said to have committed such an offence . How is tins to be discovered ?—Here , GeEtiemen , wo approach , with awe , and we pauise ,, with trembling , la cvery st ^ p we take we are assuming the p ^ son cf God himself—he gees nil—he kuow # all , tlie end f .-cm . the beginnicg , and theroiorc , it is said that he judges not according to

    our judgment , that his ways are not as our ways . — Here it ia that we ara exhorted not to jadge haitily . rashly , but to judge with the same measure as you -wish yourselves to be judged , iJUt , ! Gentlemen , there is a way—there must be a way to arrive at this judgment , for guilt may not ba incurred without punishment . There must be a law in the mind ol the Divine Being , bnt that law could never become bo substantially placed before us as to . lead us to anything like goodand consistent action . But , Gentlemen , then bow are we to arrive at the point of intention of an iniividual charged witk a crime like that laid to my charge ? Why , Gentlemen , if auy steps at all are to be taken—if all this be not mere wind and talking for the sake of

    wasting time and of bewildering the judgmott—if thii be not rather , as I contend it is sonnd and logical reason built upon the theory of cur consiitutionon the Word ot God and the laws of the laod , then how are you to arrive at mj intentions ? You mast be ' so-awiJe of thesa intentions , and yon must be so coavinced , otherwise you will have to return a verdict of guilty of insanity , which would be an absurd verdict in such a case , unless you have an opportunity of arriving at the intention of the party charged with this crime . If there be one step by which you can safely arrive at the intention of theprisoner now before yon , ( for a voluntary prisoner now I am ) and an involuntary prisoner it is the intention of tke Governmeut to make me becomeif ou will suffer

    , y such wrong to be done under yonr sanction . JGectlemen , for my previous character , far ray well known proceeding ? , from my cpenly avowed sentiments you will have a safe guide by which to ascertain what my motives have been . Judge of the whole , Gentlemen , from one s ? mple , and from the wowt sample—from that sample in tfhich I am actually charged with inculcating incendiarism and murder , the destruction cf property , and the taking away ot lifo by lawless violence . Gentlemen , I am giving the prosecutor in this caie evary advantage—I ara throwing myself cpenly before you . But you shall have the argument aad you shall judge for yourgelve * , and if you believe from this that I um realiy a man of this bad hsart ,

    and of those wicked and malignant feelings , that I hate you—that 1 wi-h the destruction of your property—that I wish yonr Louses bnrned—that I wish , yonr threat ? to be cnt—that I wi-. h despotism , and tyranny , and revolution , to begin nobody knowahow , axid to en-i in oobody knows what , then giv « VOBr verdict without loss of time . Mr . Stephens then proceeded to read a considerable portion o ( his thud . sermon , delivered come weeks ago en Primrcsc * Hill . In this sermon there were several remarkable passages which produced great effect , among .-1 which wore the 20 th chap , of Job , quoted aa a remarkable instance of the Divine denenciations against tbft wicked and the oppressors . [ Tbe effect produced by tho reading of this chapter surpasses description . At the conclusion of it , the most solemn silence pervaded the court for several seconds . ] He proceeded .

    jNow , Gentle men , . 1 pat it to yoa and the Attoi * ney-Ueneral condricting tWs prosecution , to say , whathe in the whole coarse of my life , a * a public character , I have laid down any other principles preached any other opinion *—advocated any other &rrangemflnt-i , as errangomsnts for the continuaiscd of a heakhful and happy state of society , than Buch as * r © ibu- » based oa tae unerring Word of God , contained in Divine Revelation , if . Gentlemen , chero be anything that has struck you as at all strange iu tke language which I have iartiead to you—and I read those particular passages because I knew there was that which the Learned aad Hon . Attorney-General , in all probability , will make a note of for the purpose of impressing their strength

    in yoor minds—if thers be in the whole of that long quotation , anything at all stron » , I e * k rou , IS hagliahmen—1 ask you , as Christians , whetaer there be not a canse—I ask you , as gentlemen of property , of that station in society , which gives yoa leisure for your natural intelligence to employ iti * elf in the study of those great questions of ecclesiastic and social Government , whether , in the present state of tho working population of thia country , there is any probability—any likelihood , even ike remotest possibility , of enjoying an 3 thing like contentment . I put it to yon , auxions as yott must b ? , and as you ough : to be , for the preservation of your property , and for the protection of that which you rightly call your own . 1 ask on

    you what condition—on what term ? , you are by the laws of this country , and by the lews of God , entitled to consider yo » r property as your own , rather than that of another ? Why , Gentlemen , strange and extravagant as these assertions may eppear , they are not at all , in any respect , strange—they we awrtiong that liava been made by the greatest end ths ablest writers of our land . 1 might quote , as the prose cutor well knows , from Milton , Paloy , Locke , Rosscin * , PaSVndorfi j —iron * every writer either on moral or political science , and the whole of these authorities will tell you precisely what I ha ^ e said and what I have again and a ^ &in recorded , that the only true foundation of society is the safety , the security , and the happiness of the poor , from whom all the other

    orders of society aiiae . Gentlemen take away seenrity and safety from the poor mantake away from the poor man , a ? I have tere pat it the opportunity of getticfr his bread—take away from him the means of maintaining his family , the reasonable comforts of life—deprive him either by refusing employment to him , or by attaching to that employment such pains and penalties as render it impossible for him , as an intelligent being , to comply with those terms , and then , I esk , to what do you reduce that -individual ? You evidently reduce him to a state of desperation—to a state of reckless despair—revenga . Voa drive him as an outcast beyond 1 be piiie of civilized society ; and yoa compel him to bo a wanderer on the face of the earth , while , at the same time , jou ana him with weapons for the dmurnrtinn of thrtt nrnnnrt-u « rkixK . ' (¦ » ... U

    otherwuwt , be his pleasure and his pride , and hia re - Hgiom obligation to protect .. Gentlemen , multiply that individual until you h * se the entire mass- < -tie great majority of our population-resisting under these circumstances . Place before yenr minis . Gentlemen—for you are compelled to place it before your minds in this case—place before your minds thepopulation as we have at this day in England , according to all Parliaaientary docaments— -according to all official returns—according to all authentic records—place their eitaation before your mmds , and you must at once perceive that they tave it not in their oo * er to obtain a sufficiency for their reajsonuDle 1 naiutenan . ee acd support—I will not say for the just and proper comfort of their families . Now , Gentlemen , you are well aware that it is

    aavmst this state of thing *—against the law which takes away all power from yourselves , and from yonr " / v er ParV ) njLOlier - ' and which places that power in the hands of thr- e Commissioners , who can have no power at all to declare to us the mind of the Queen —because the mind of ihe Queen is supposed to be resident in . her , as she is tae Supremo Magistrate undeptua law . « The law , " s * ya Bracton , " mtkes the King , not the King the law . " It is impossible , therefore , Gentlemen , under our constitution , consistirig , as it doe * , cj the House of Representatives , the House of Lords , aad the Monarch , acting aa they have to act , and as they must act . within the Consritution—it is impossible for any ' cf them , or lor the whole of them , to transfer that power which .

    has beun given to them by the people , Under the constitutioifof three Commissioners , who have the power of making orders , rules , and regulations , which oro to have the effect of law , and to be binding upon the subjects of this realm . Gentlemen , Against that act , which , by a ry . oral force , by an irresistible necessity , dissolves the allegiance du 6 to the authorities—^ hich breaks up tha homesu-ad of iho > cottager—which compels uim , when a little temporary relief is required , to Bell the whole of hia property ^ to become- an inmate in ' one- , of thosa U 1 , 1011 W oi-klicuge

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    of August 24 , 1839 . THE ypRTHERy STAR . 7

• Citation
  • Northern Star (1837-1852), Aug. 24, 1839, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1071/page/7/