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- -mrtQ * XOR t- " - PHYSICAL FORCE . ¦ raTHB FUSTIAN JACKETS , BLISTERED ' -j HAXDS , AXD UKSHOBN CHIXS . j a ^ M , r q ? lt Fbizxds , —After my two letters , ing FM * , j > for this week , shall have been published , ^ Kgjir not in "what order my very excellent friend , C jj jnil . may feel disposed to lay the others i f ^ L j you . I must snly rnn chance , and , as j . -t ^ t , time is allowed for mating up voluminous des-- « aies ' hcrry , much to say , and little time to Bay it ' tBr ^ ple * d m T excuse for all apparent inaccura-*« , However , sttle being important , I sha ll , in j }'¦ g j == , -r - ^ H .,- % -aT ) 7 E > j ~ i"V DUVCTP J T IT / " ^ T ?/""* "IT j
M ^ g ^ , endeavour to preserve as good & style as pos-1 ^ C ' j , ¦^ t me devote this letter to & defence o ! myself on Mi points , on -which I haTe been assailed . Firstly , i » 7 me begin -with the great gun , physical force , and j EL see bow , with , one well-directed fire , I shall j K * L ? y every attack of the enemy in that quarter . Bnt ! Ktee I begin , let me be perfectly understood , as ; B \ , -j 5 , ^ 473 have keen by men of plain common K ^ y and by every one except judges , barristers , and ; KrT ' who ba ^ e an interest in not comprehending ]
fekin laixa&ge . [ iry opinion , then , wiih regard to physical force , is- i Lt a resort to it , in cases of legislative oppression and ; ^ uijiT , is a virtue . I admit the principle ; bat some- j \* &i : like success must be fairly presumed before the j Ls serjBcnt is tri * ! * ' **** & > t * * ** mnch reason j £ affiBg a failure df a decided one , and occasioned by I ifjat of dne consideration of the means and conae- Lence treason ; or , perhaps , it would be more just to , ( all it msdness , ; Aesin , si to the effect produced by the introduction of ? he gaesuon of physical force into Chartist diacussionB , '
—rely I , more ™ any other man , would be justified • d sjonacing it , and in throwing the mantle of other ' s tallies over myself ; but I do not denounce it "What 1 : - aoSEK is , the desertion of those who were loudest in tieir tiandtrs—for , observe , the Tery mention , and tt £ wholesome and constitutional dread of physical t Ttf i ns a powerful auxiliary . The injury , then , was aot so much in the talking about it , as in the ridicule j ? && justly cast upon it , by the desertion of the ; pas ; loud of its advocates . I never knew a parcel of ' bailsmen shuffle out of physical force , as the greater '
jnsber of its former supporters hare done . It is my ( Jewess only to defend myself , and , inasmuch as I cast j 3 thine upon those who were conscientiously ef the ' pj ^ gjcsJ force party , and am regardless of the fame ol ; gw deserter , I raise no ground for opposition , Bare my jgdaiation as to the part I hare taken myself in the : mestion- However , believe me , that the very agitation rf the question has done much good , however old women jnsj stare , and the Horse Guards and our pacific rulers ' js » j be horrified at the report of the domestic pop-gun , yiJls they rejoice in the report of the deadly thunder ; v pw foreign artillery , dealing death to uphold ;
dapotism . I -sriih , from my soul , that one million Chartists , frjm eighteen to fifty years of age , had all the necessary : j-eontrements of war , and I would stake my existence , j gat no more blood would be shed in Europe ; while : ijaecarity of life and property would be words erased j torn the vocabulary of the alarmist , and poverty would . bie leave of the poor man's cot . I would gladly hold j 1 commission in such serrice for the preservation of ' pace . But why waste words in setting before y » n the '• faDy of attending to the denunciations of the enemy ! \ If tou had proved that wearing white hats and short j
laeeches would effect your object , the wearing of white tats and short breeches would have been reviled as a ' lioodthirsty and destructive principle , as physical ; faree has been . It is not the means , believe me ; no , it is ; fiie end ; and da you once prove to those who buy ; cheap and sell dear , and who make merchandise of your J l&boar by holding a monopoly of legislative power , that j j&Etine and praying would gain the Charter , and that ; instant they will offer rewards for blasphemy and j gluttony , and petitien their House for the suppression j of vice , that is , for the stoppage of praying and fasting . Mv good friends , in considering man as a politica l .
instrument , 1 implore you to lose sight 01 bota vice and Tirtue . They are in political men , jast what kind : or knotty and cross grain are in timber ; merely requir-, ing more or less of the hatchet , or a difference cf t # ols \ in the working , to mould them i * the mechanic ' s pur- j pose- "Who , in this world , can contemplate , otherwise ' ] tf ^ Ti -with horror , the idea ot one man tying a rope < around another man ' s neck , while a sheriff , for honour , and the inferior murderers for pay , become partakers in ! the cold-blooded murder , reconciled to the man of easy ] conscience by the liw ' s authority ,. _ 4 the tyrant ' s pie * . '
Who can reflect upon the barfcarity of man towards his fellow in a then wind shapes * "Who can reflect i upon the duty of a soldier , which teaches him that he i is bound , at his officer ' s command , to shoot his fellow 1 treature , without inquiring into the provocation or ! justification ? Who can look , without a shudder ,-at the hired perjurer , 'Harrison , for instance , or scores of ) policemen , who daily perform the office , ) swearing ' away the life or the liberty of a fellow creature , for ( gain ? Aye , who can lock upon such acts of barbarity inncrred ? 111 tell you who can . Those who are
paid ; while those who are aot , feel rather jealousy than , disgust Tiiis is nature , and the man who begins ' ¦ altering that is a fool ; but then laws should be made i to show nature off to advantage , instead of to a disad- ' vintage ; and I am one of those who believe that the \ virtues of man , if cherished , and fairly displayed , very i nsuch preponderate over Ms vices . Sanctified hypo-tj erites will tell you not , and that , do irhat you will , i too are all to go to hell in a hand-basket , thereby , in „ &et , miking you mere passive creatures in this world—}
passive to their will Churchmen call the . Socialists infidels ; but what think you of the unnatural monster ! who would throw good works wholly out of the scale of salvation ? Nothing could , by possibility , go farther ] to level vice and virtue , *>» * " this hellish tortuous I TTHTJTTl j Well , bat I am preaching a sermon .- —however , one / word before I conclude this -picture . Now , observe , j if out of twenty-six millions ,- "we require one million ! persons to be paid for hanging , shooting , torturing , and I
4 fstroying their fellow wq ,, we will find twenty-five millions to revile them foj the unnatural propensity ;! felet the one million * of offenders all drop off , as * Tithered leaves in anfcoan ) , and the twenty-five millions j < £ the rtvilerB will become competitors for the offices J they filled , and so would it be if society was redueed j tc bnt two millionj , requiring still the one million , or ' ti » one half , as the cruel staff , to keep the others in ; Ejection to thsir will . Aye , and the two millions ' woild fight ( with nature in her uncultivated . form ; backing them until , like the Kilkenny cats , they had ! tevonre-J each other to the very tails . I
If none of theae ^ bloody oSces were required to support unnatural dominion , the mind , made more virteous , would , by degrees , begin to donbt that snch a « tate of things ever existed ; and the altered school ¦ would teaca , doctrines ¦ which would render the re-as-« mption of cruelty difficult , if not impossible . Tou see , then , my view is , that man is born with propensities which may be nourished into virfcae * , or ¦ thwarted into vicee , according to the training ; that peafcasion is better than compulsion ; that , naturally , tt « n loves virtue more than vice ; but that , artificially , fce has been compelled to apply vice to vice , to preserve « ven an existence upon earth , and all in consequence ¦ ef too great distinction , promoted and daily increased * 7 class legislation , -whereby the vices of the few wholly extinguish the virtues of the many .
0 if the tyrants would bnt allow me to write and publish what I thought proper , -without persecution , -aad -would allow me only five years of that leisure I * ow enjoy , and for which I would most willingly com-P « md ; what a beaoty-spot I wonld put on poor S * tare " B wounded face , and how lovely I would make bar form appear , dree « ed in the great Mairafictnreri rich and graceful robe * . ' she should appear all . in ITVw green dresses of five acres' dimension . Of all things , let me avoid being misunderstood ; And therefore attend to me now that the smoke of the first Tolley of physical force ha » vanished . I tell 70 m , then ,
that never , never , never will yen gain Universal Sufft » ge by othar means than physical foroe ; just as you «* kwd Btform ; bnt with less physical force . Observe , 4 hen , the different shades of physical force . To acquire QBpenatioa lor a parcel of Anglo-Indiani , who choee to grow poison for the Chinese on speculation , yoa have to use much and Tery expensive physical force To humble the King of the Gipsies , yon have to boml * rd fortresses , blow up thousands , and run the chance of an universal -war . To preserve a State Church at tome , you ha-re to keep the musket ever loaded , and S » bayonet ever fixed . To starve the poor , and make
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the operative sell his labour for the masters' price , you have to pay a large , illicit physical-force p 3 rty , all legal , all constitutional , becauss all required for the preservation of class legislation , to make the many work for the ' profit of the few . And now , do yon suppose that the system , which can only be upheld by such means , will ever surrender to less force , or to moral power . Fudge . ' " What , then , after all , are we to have civil war , before we can gain Universal Suffrage ?' asks some moral philosopher . Ko , not a bit of it ; civil war would blast the fruits . But I'll tell you what you are to have ;—a dread of eivil war , —in which the people would be all united on one Bide , and the enemy not united upon the other . * v , « nKnMnA : _ n -.. ;~ I- * , *—— * - »— iv ^ — 1 > __ — .
Tou will carry Universal Suffrage , when the men who made you burn and riot to effect reform , are once more where they were before , upon the wrong side of the hedge . The very men who carried Reform , and from the very same motive will carry Universal Suffrage , never doubt it The time will come when the Whigs , who now persecute us , will be flinging the dirt from 9 ne to the other , just as our deserters are . It is nature , nature , nature ; and believe me that , although a united House of Commons may safely " let slip the dogs of war" npon an unoffending people , that it is an experiment whieh will require a larger majority than the hungry Whigs can ever again hope to com-Trmnd .
Physical force , when next used , will be recommended by Daniel O'Connell , Lord John Russell , and Lord Normanby ; and justified by Sir John Campbell , the Whig and something more ; and Edwaid Baines , the Tory and something less . For these reasons I most heartily rejoice ,, when I see the Tories beating the Whigs soundly with their own stick ; mind , with their own stick ; because they must be beaten well with that first ; in fact , they must smash it on their own heads , and then they'll cut the universal wattle , the Whig place preserver , the Tory life destroyer . Every single Whig now persecuting us will make a capital shaft horse in the universal waggon ; but;—but;—but , —if ever they get a leg over the traces again , public opinion is a worse driver than I take it for .
How , for my part , from the beginning , in the physical force department -. — The first time the subject was hinte-i at , since Baines , and John Edward Taylor , and the " Reformers" had used it , " was by Richard Oastler , at a great meeting in the Theatre at Halifax , and then only to declare the right of every Englishman to have amis . Every word that Oastler said was not onJy tree , bat good ,- however , I knew what the probable result of the publication of the advice , may be without note or comment , and therefore , when I followed , and it is now nearly three years since , I used these very words : — "Two
things , and two only , can now impede our progress . The one is , any , the slightest , recourse to physical force or ontbreak ; the other is , any union , association , or connection with the Tory party . " Now all Halifax can testify to the truth or falsehood of this assertion . I have been taunted with telling the people that would lead them on to death or glory . I admit it : they were my very words at hundreds of meetings . But just hear the text ; and then let one of the millions deny the very words : — " I tell you , that if every man
worked as I have worked , or one half as hard , that we have moral force enough , and to spire , to accomplish our every wish and all that we ought to have ; and when every man has used his moral power as I have done , then , should injustice continue its unholy dominionf and refuse to surrender what is dne to an united people , then , should no better general offer , I will volunteer to lead you on to death or glory , while I would prefer the danger of a soldier to the responsibility , of a general . " Now can any man deny those very words , hundreds of times rrpeated ?
Again- Have I not ever ana over again said , " that nothing but the laainess , indolence , » r betrayal of moralforce leaders , could ever drive the people to a physical utbreak ; that if they did their duly , moral force had strength enough to throw the onus of physical-force npon the real physical-force tyrants , who would be obliged to use it for the suppression of our moral union and pewer , and that then we should be better organised to' meet it ?"
Agaiirr" Have I not told you to surfeiting , " that moral power is the deliberative quality in each man ' s mind ,- -which teaches him how to reason , how to endure , and when forbearance becomes a crime , and when stretched to its highest , should it fafJ , and should physical force be required , which God forbid , it will come to the aid of moral power like an electric shock ; bat the man who marshals it destroys it , and the man who counsels it is a fool , and will be the first to desert ? " Cannot every infant Chartist repeat these words , so often repeated by their mothers and cheered by their fathers ? The wives , the enthusiastic , virtuous , patient , patriotic , and cheering wives of the working men , have ever borne me a fond regard , because never counselled evil to their husband * , or by my advice led them into trouble .
How often have I said , " arms never yet gave the people right ; right gives arms , and arms protect right ?" Again : "I never will countenance revolution ; not that I could not justify it , but that it would not mend the evil complained of ; the curse of a physical revolution is , that with the last shot from the democratic ranks , they think the thing is settled ; they are never prepared with a good system , to replace at once the bad ono for
the destruction of which they have risked their lives ; while those who can afford te live idly through the surf of the past storm , seiae the opportunity of the propitious moment , and jnerely strengthen themselves in ' a newer , but not less powerful fortress of oppression ; and , knowing where the citadel was before weak and attacked , they mend it , and thus every revolution , gives a glimpse of hope , while it insures a fresh stroke of tyranny . "
Again : D ) d I not go to Barnsley , and Sutten-in-Ashfield , in the very height of the bustle of 1839 , and there prosecute parties myself , far drilling and training , and , in open court , lay down the law , point out the danger , and endeavour to save the dupes of men , who , in my soul I believe , wished for blood while they nestled * in conscious and cowardly security ? While I did these things , did I not also show my feeling for those who were immured by the art of the seducer , and give bail to the amount of ssveral hundred pounds for five poor operatives of Manchester , whom I never saw , but who would have otherwise lingered in prison for months before trial ?
Again : Have I not told you that " my pillow would be no resting place for my head , if I thought that I had recklessly induced a defenceless and unarmed people to rush into mad conflict with a disciplined and well armed force ? " and , have I not pointed out the widow ' s sufferings , the orphan ' s state , and the condition of poor men banished from their homes , sheltering from the pelting storm under some cold rock , while the wellhoused sdldier was gaining strength for a fresh attack , when day presented his victims to his sight .
Again -. When asked for my opinion upon the question of arming , in the Convention , did I not say that , " independent of the legal responsibility , the moral responsibility was enough to deter men from such advice ; because , report would magnify pistols into cannons , and teach the people to abandon their real strength for a chimera which did not exist—that the people were not aimed , and were not able to arm , and that the Tery recommendation wonld furnish to the laay a justification for doing nothing , while their example would become contagious , and infect the whole people , with apathy . "
Again : Did I not venture , when no other person would , to denounce the sacred holiday ? stating , as my reason , that " the people wonld either starve , or be driven to an unequal conflict with an armed and welldisciplined force , " Tes , if I have no right to claim credit for any other act of my whole life , I as en * titled to praise for that which , in the performance of duty , I did not shrink from , at a time when the nation was mad , and for whieh I bad every reason to expect a result most dreadful to myself . But I triumphed No blood was tiled , although the cannon and the musket were loaded , and the capitalists were resolved to embrace the opportunity of reading labour a lecture which it would never forget
Did I not denounce Mont * and Douglas for selling muskets , and establishing rifle corps , which I knew well they would desert I Did I not oppose tha iBegal parts of the manifesto , lest their adoptiaa should bring the people into tronble ? Such , then , bare been my sentiments , delivered over and oTe * i agate in many parts of the kingdor . upon
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the subject of civil waT ; wliile , as regards the question of war generally , I beg of you never to lose sight of my opinions thus expressed : — " War is to trade , what the hot-bed is to the plant ; it forces it , but strengthen * it not in its growth ; while peace is as the pure air of heaven , which forces it not , but strengthens it , till it arrives at a wholesome maturity . " Now , let us reason plainly together , for a moment , upon this subject When I was called up to receive judgment , I was armed with affidavits from sundry places , signed by over four thousand persons , each and all declaring that bo tax from encouraging physical force , my every speech had a direct contrary tendency . One affidavit , numerously signed from R » ehda ! e , by the very officers of the borough , stated that the speeeh , . _ ., _ - .. _*•• . ., * .
which formed part of the charge against me , had , on their oaths , in their opinion , preserved the peace of tbe town , and had prevented scenes of horror , which otherwise they had reason to anticipate . Wby do I dwell upon these affidavits ? Because the day is gone when a man can rehearse one part before the public , and play a different one before the law . Because , if I had counselled physical-force , I would have scorned to plead the opposite upon the day of trial ; and , because tbe veTy fact of the whole people coming forward to bear evidence to the reverse , proves that my words were not mistaken by those for whose guidance they were solely intended . The people would not have allowed me to repudiate physical force for my own defence , had I urged it for their adoption .
Again : Did I not go to Glasgow , at a great expence , and offer myself upon the hustings , and there seize the opportunity of the presence of the aristocracy and middle cJasses , to repeat , in their presence , and before the people , the very words I bad always used upon the subject ; and the people , the crowd of people , who had heard me when the enemy would not attend , all bore testimony that my sentiments , as then delivered , had been those invariably laid down in the absence of the privileged classes .
Well , but don't the press know this ? Aye , as well as you do ; but observe , it is not their interest to wash the blackamoor white , if « pposed to them , or to defend the character of the political foe . No ; and let me assure you that no paper of any character , that is , of great corruption , either in England or Ireland , would publish this letter , even as a twenty guinea advertisement The English would not , the Irish dare not ; and yet , if the Beggannan , who has asked for 100 , 000
fighting men in my presence , and who has threatened to crimson the green fields with gore , and make the rippling streams red with blood , or have justice—if he was to hint away my character , or that of any useful man—of any man really bent upon practical good for the people , every organ of the " Establishment , " Whig and Tory , would publish and direct attention to the slander . But of this , its causes and consequences , I Bhall fully treat in another letter .
" There is , " said Napoleon , " bnt a step between the ridiculous and the sublime . " Let us see whether or not the ridiculousness of physical force , and the sublimity of moral power , as taught by the legitimatists , furnish any proof of this great levelling principle . Suppose , then , the following conversation to take place between a liberal mehukb of Parliament and his patron j — Patron—Well , Squire , I am sorry to inform you that our young friend can't have the living of Catchpenny ; it was promised to Mr . Stick-to-ns , during the life of the late incumbent ; but I tell y » u what we can do for you;—your son can have a cornetcy in a crack light dragoon regiment , with an asiurance that we'll shove him along .
Squire—O , that ' s just as good—that will do ; indeed , I believe John would prefer it , and his course of divinity reading will do him no harm I suppose . Patron—O damn it , no , not a bit ; he'll soon forget that in barracks ; that won't stand in hid way . Thus Master John passes from the sublime to the ridiculous , and , instead of being a curer of touls , becomes a skewerer of bodies . B » t this is all patriotism : the man who had a narrow escape of praying to be delivered "from battle , and murder , and sudden death , " is now , by the perplexing current of patronage , obliged to change bis tone into , " make-ready—present //• e . " Now , pray observe ; this man ' s patriotism , courage , honour , and valour , all depend upon some six or Sbven shillings a day . He carries a long pole with
what they call the colours of the regiment , and when hoisted , no matter what the cause of the battlo , what the provocation , or what the result may be , he ceases to be a free agent , and must order those under him to shoot his own brother , if duly requires it , or , what is worse , they may be compelled , in compliance -with his order , to shoot one of their own brothers for going home , without leave , to see a loved wife , or child , on the bed of death ! and this is physical force , directed by a strong feeling of honour , high sense of duty , and unconquerable love of country ! this is , in fact , a bravery , although the odds are ten to one that three in every seven ot those sublime htroes , would not unfrequently give commission , country , honour , courage , and all , for a good start of a hundred yards , with a fence between them and the prying uye of scandal !
Now , this is constitutional physical force . If an insult is offered to our flag , on the high seas ; if one of cmr Ambassadors is slighted at Court ; it one of our allies shall feel reasonable ground for jealousy against a rival ; if our Monarch shall be slightingly mentioned ; if our merchants shall be damaged in their speculations ; if our manufacturers shall be refused free market for their goods ; these , a ll these , are fair grounds for war . bnt , if you , the whola people , who pay the cost of all ware , ask to be relieved from an ignominious slavery , and un-Christian treatment , and great oppression , new
forces are levied , for which you must pay , to keep down the spirit which persecution ia likely to generate . Cruelty and cowardice , which the great Sterne Mils " twin ruffians" ! O ! nothing is more easy than to find a satisfactory reason for the exercise of cruelty and cowardice ! Just hear the language of Sterne upon this subject Tou will find the following words in one of his chapters i n " The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy , " where Engenius thus speaks to Torick ; he says : —
" Yorick , when , to gratify a private appetite , it is on « e resslved upon that an innocent and a helpless creature shall be sacrificed , 'tis an easy matter to pick up sticks enow from any thicket , where it has strayed , to make a fire to offer it up with . " Now , then , be assured , that the physical-force party , being the representatives of capitalists , an * capitalists living upon what the law allows them to plunder from labour , rather than upon fair profit ; be assured , I say , that that party will never lack an excuse , and a good one , to sacrifice you , the poor oppressed , to the unrighteous dominion of the rich oppressor . I will puBh
this figure a little further , but not to its utmost limits . First , you are free men ; free-bom men living in a free country , and able to pay ( whether willing ia an another thing , for you have no will in these matters ) twenty millions for the freedom ef others . Yery well . Now , attend to me . You are free , and you are now only restrained from doing what the letter and the spirit of the law forbid ; but when your passiveness renders even that spirit too mild , and that letter too unintelligible , or susceptible of being warped by an ingenious advocate now and then in favour of him who can pay five guineas to defend a farthing ' s worth of right ; and
observe , you must have a new trial in every case ; for the even-handed law establishes no mean precedent , no paltry guide in aught whieh a poor man ' s case can furnish : no , no ; precedent is for the rich , prac-, ' tice for the poor . But suppose 70 a tree mer were to lay up six months' provision , and r <> - solve , every man of you belonging to the operative class , to take a six months * holiday ; never stirring out of your h « nses ; offending no man ; reading the Bib' . e all day , and offering np prayers , sight and mornio g , for
y » ur Monarch and your rulers ; think yon th' jt ( constituted as the House of Commons and society now is , you would be allowed to enjoy jour " ¦• oiium cum diffttitate f" Think you , yoa would " be allotted to remain idle , and thus enjoy 700 c ease , without interruption ! If 70 a think so , you are great big fools ; for , b » assved ,. that an . » ct would very speedily be passed ,, eatitled as act for the suppression of Idleness , and Melees devotk »; anr k - which a power would be Totted in the local author ) tieg to press you to work , as yo * are liable to ha presr ^ to fight
My fritaada . I have mada saaa w study through life ; I have be * a la all classes . « t socle' , y frOm the very highest to the Tery lowest ; X ka-re V * best memory , perhaps , of any man in the w ©» Jd ; I except none , not one ; I have an observant eye . « J > d , I hope , some discrimina tion i and a h * r * at »» J » looked upon the bright tide
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of the picture . I love , I respect man , with all his faults ; they are convertible into perfections , if the right course is only adopted—that is , to take tenipta-. tioa , and .. self-destroying ^ power put of his way . I look niton men'as % < i many pfenlU in the hands of the joiner ; a good one will make from -them a slghlly arid a useful piece of furniture , while the chopstick will only use what comes easy to hand , rejecting much of good , which , in other hands , might have been turned to benefit The laws , then , are the joiners ; the planks are the men : our joiners are chop-sticks ; we want some good and efficient cabinet-makers , to make a piece of useful state furniture ont of the planka ; and these I defy you to have until , by Universal Suffrage , every plank shall find its worth in the estimation of the Mbinet-makera . ... .. __
God bless you , my friends , and believe me that no power oa earth can save this country from a Whig constitutional revolution in England , and an Irish meral physical-force move , but giving every good member an interest in the preservation of peace , law , and order . The machinery is gone too far to be regulated by any power short of the whole national strength , and the land must follow . 1 I am , and till death will remain , Your friend and faithful servant , FEAB . GV 3 O'Connor .
P . S . I wish my reasons for thus breaking loose to be distinctly known , not that I either offer the slightest apology , or deem any requisite ; the apology is due to me for having been so long unjustly silenced . But I wish to state my reasons for addressing you just now . Firstly , then , I had supplied you with matter in my " Looking Glass , " while Parliament assembled ; and , during the recess , I wisely sacrificed the pleasure to the dread of allowing a petty junto , under the immediate controul of my oppressors , to tyrannise over me without the power of oven complaining . This would
not have broken my spirit , but it would have gnawed my heart and sat heavy on my slumbers . I took care , like a prudent general , to wait for the trade-wind , and , in gosd truth , my excellent and unflinching friend , Mr . Hill , left me little desire to add anything to what he had so much better said . However , I waited for the trade-wind ; and I have taken care to be enquired after by two or three Members of Parliament , through whom I can send my complaints , and my oppressors ' new inventions , before I again embarked . I hate giving a little tyrant the power to ppreaa me ; it is like being held for a cur dog to bite you .
I bave other reasons . It is my right ; and I never will abandon a right , or furnish a precedent for others being deprived of theirs . It ia not only my constitutional and nioral , but my legal right , and has been withheld from me by direction of Lord Normanby , in direct violation of law , and in the teeth of the prison rules , which , in No . 3 of rules for the Governor , give him the power to examine and transmit TO his prisoners , only such parcels and correspondence as he shall think fit ; but it gives him no power whatever to examine or withhold any parcel , letter , or communication sent FROM the prison—none whatever—none throughout the whole—they cannot show it—I defy them . I have them , then , on the grand principle of right and law ; and now for comparative justice .
I was struck most forcibly by seeing , in my own paper , a long advertisement , headed in thundering type , " The PeopU'i Alai / axine . " Ho , ho , said I , some good man at large , come to the aid of us poor devils in bonds : but , behold my astonishment , upon discerning that the said magazine was written by the Rev . Mr-Stephens , and printed by my publisher , whom I was not allowed even to see alone upon business . I said , " this is a degree of temperature Above Irish blood . " Well , in the same paper , I saw that Vincent was allowed to write for the publio press , and all these
things delighted me very much : because no man can establish a right for himself , without making it a sUpping-stone to every man ' s right Stephens and Vincent have a perfect right to write ; there ia neither prison rule nor law to prevent , them ; but I thought it rather hard that I should be the very first rasn in England ever treated , as I have been , for libel ; mind libel , never lose sight of my crime ; because in another letter , I think I have put a new face upon the grinning countenance of the old " Establishment , " as regards my offence and punishment .
Well , but I had sti ll a greater , or rather , a more immediate reason , for addressing you at this identical time . You shall hear it On Thursday last , I was walking in the mess passage , for my yard has been given up to transported thievea of all sorts ; however , I was walking in the mess passage , and the Governor brought me my letters . Amongst others , there was one from Mr . Hobson sent to me by desire of my friend Mr . Hill , enclosing me a proof of an article , headed " The Question of Legality , " and on which he
requested k word—just a word—as a lawyer , upon the tone of the article . The Governor might have suppressed the letter , as many others would have done , but be was too much the gentleman ; he handed it to me , accompanied with these words : — " Mr . O'Connor , this is a letter from Mr . Hill , containing a proof of an article for the Star . I give you the letter and its contents ; but I cannot allow it to go back with any remark or any comment upon it . MV INSTRUCTIONS ARE STRICT AND POSITIVE NOT TO ALLOW YOU TO HAVE ANY
COMMUNICATION WHATEVER WITH THE PRESS , and those I must obey . " I replied , " Such , Sir , are your instructions ; and , you say , you have a duty to perform—so have I ; and now I will show you that a man who has for six months been held with a silken thread , will not submit to be bound in the iron chains of tyranny . This , Sir , " I continued , "is unparalleled . This is another drive of the new screw . I now , Sir , defy all unconstitutional restraint ; , and , henceforth , if I am to be bullied , it shall be by main force . I'll beat you all in the end . " In another letter , I have set forth the many indignities , illegalities , and impositions , to which I have been subjected ; but I ask neither help nor sympathy . If I cannot beat them single-handed , I won't beat them atalL F . O . 'C .
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^*~ —^^ . - TO HER MOST GRACIOUS MAJESTY THE QUEEN . Madam , —In pursuing the subject of our inquiry into the mode in which civil government must act , so as to secure tbe peace and good order of society , we bave next to notice tboso functions of the ruling powers , which are of a corrective and reformative character ; and which , in their developement , assume the forms of criminal jurisprudence and assiduous civilisation . And here , let me remark , that in a well-ordered state , that is , a state the laws and institutions of which are so framed as to be ia accordance with the nataie of man , and to regard , with paternal solicitude , his Attare destiny ; these two objeets can never be separated . We
are , thank God , past that point , when it wa » oonceived that vindictive- punishment was the sole andi of the law ' s interference-. We have ceased to regard men as so many machines , and have found out tkafc oar appeals and institutions must be , from heaoefbrth , addressed asd adapted to the condition otaautes WHO thibk . ; and this discovery once mads , though its' operation may be slow , yet the moral revolution , which it will occasion , ia certain ; and , by m& < bye , its effects will be felt , even within the preciacta af your royal folate . It will force its way as a principle upon the attention of those who occupy the Chapel of St Steptea , and will , before long , be the guiding star of ; he eoansils in the cabinet of St James ' s ^
'We have seen law , the proteotiva aad restrictive fusetioiis of the civil power , operating upon the portion 0 / society , who are , in the main , disposed to act rightly , and to regard the dictates of a just and honest principle in their intercourse with each other . But it is to be lamented that , in every state , certain had spirits are found to exist , who ean neither be allured into the practice of rectitude by the stimulation of hope , and the assurances of protection , nor deterred from the commission of crime , by the operation of
fear , nor the constraint ot restrictive laws . Men of this stamp neither fear God , nor regard man : self-love , in a more than ordinary degree of mischievous developement , is in them the ruling prinoiple of the life ; and any attempt to lead them to the adoption of better principles , by other than coercive measures , would be as futile as to seek to blot out the son by a cloud ot dust To such , then , the rod must be applied ; the corrective function of the executive must be brought into operation . -
I am perfectly sensible that the formation of a system of criminal jurisprudence , which shall be at once calculated to repreas crime , and produce a salutary
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reformation among the criminal population , . is a subject of extreme difficulty , and of immense imp artance . It requires , I conceive ,-an extensive acquaintance with the minute shades of human character , to t nable any body of men to legislate wisely upon the subjet t It is one , however , so intimately connected with tbe general welfare—so capable , if placed upon a right foundation , of producing tbe most beneficial results , and , if wrongly directed , so certain of producing tbe mo 8 t lamentable evils , both to individuals and to society , that it cannot fail to demand the most serious attention of all who are at all anxious for the improvement and prosperity « f their race . When we _
take into consideration the fact , that tbe same powers , capacities , and capabilities , which make a clever and expert criminal , would , if they had been properly directed , have made a good and useful member of society ; we must surely regret that so much of what is good and valuable should be worse than lost , and become only a plague and a curse to the community . When to this consideration is added the conviction that a vast mass of that crime which , while public sympathy is compelled to mourn , public justice is equally compelled to punish , is the result , in many cases the immediate result , —of arrangements which society has established for its
supposed advantage , aad that the crime had been to a fearful » xtent fostered and increased by the operation of those very laws , which mistaken policy has enacted for its prevention or suppression , ia not the conviction forced upon us , that by some means or other we have been all the whila acting upon erroneous principles , and tkat we are imperatively called upon to stand still and consider , preparatory to a determined retracing of our steps ? And when to all this ia superadded the awful certainty , . that every one who holds a place in those ranks who are deemed the outcasts of
society , is destined fur an eternal existence , and that the happiness o » misery of that existence , depends entirely upon the prevalence of good or evil , which become constituent of his character here , we aro bound by every thing we hold dear and sacred , aa men and Christians , to do all in our power to elevate the moral and intellectual character of all around as ; and use our utmost endeavours , in accordance with the merciful designs of an all-gracious Providence , to prevent those who are heirs , with us , of a common immortality from going down to the chambers of death .
In order to a right understanding of our subject , permit me , Madam , to remark , that while we lament the extent and the prevalence of crime , we must ever recollect that every effect must spring from a corresponding cause , and that , in order to tbe removal of the effect , the cause must be ascertained from which it draws ita nourishment and support One great oversight , which has more or less characterised the legislative proceedings on the subject of crime and prison discipline , is a want of attention to this simple , but comprehensive principle ; and hence our attempts at correctional measures have been crude and undigested . Criirie , however diversified its form , and however
numerous the channels in which it u seen to flow , may , I conceive , be traced to three prominent and distinct sourcea . The causes which lead to the formation and developement of a vicious course of action , arise either from constitutional deficiency , the misarrangements of society , or imperfect education ; and to these points , all acts , relative to the prosecution and punishment of offences , should have an immediate reference . First , the cause of vicious inclinations and propensities , may be some constitutional defect We have known persons , of an amiable and excellent turn of mind , who , nevertheless , had sdeh a strong and dominant predisposition to some one act of delinquency , some transgression
against the peace and security of society , aa was entirely beyond their own controul , and which , whenever the opportunity came in their way , was sure to hurry them into inevitable ruin and disgrace . Sometimes we find , on some subjects , an entire absence of the sense of right and wrong , and an apparent indifference to the infliction of pain , injury , and mischief , which can only be accounted for by admitting that , on the points in question , the parties are subject to some peculiar Ypecios of mental delusion , for which they desorve pity , rattier than harsh censure and vindictive punishment The existence of hereditary diseases in
a family is well known ; and we are also aware that disease is of a mental , as well as of a physical character . Hence we shall find it no hard taak to trace the connection between diseases in the mental structure , and the manifestation of them in actual offences against the lsws and institutions of society . It has been well observed , by the greatest philosopher of ancient or modern times , that man ia not life in himself ; but only an organised form , capable of receiving life from the Divine Author of all existence ; and that the life so communicated becomes good or evil , according to he nature and quality of the form or vessel into which it is received .
This observation is as just as it is beautiful , and it involves a principle of human action which cannot be too closely attended to . We feel that it would be unjust to punish a musician , because he failed to produce a flood of harmony from an untuned or disordered instrument ; and it is quite aa unjust to inflict vindictive punishment upon tbe unhappy individual , who , from no fault of his own , but from the inherited constitution of his nature , ia on a given point rendered incapable of acting right in his intercourse with the general community , of which he forms a part . I am not speaking of persons who are confessedly insane ; about tbe duties of society .
as it respects their condition , there con be but one opinion ; they may be placed under such restraint as ia cWrly necessary to prevent their doing injury to either themselves or others . But I am convinced that a vast amount of our criminal population is made up of persons , who are considered perfectly competent to manage their own affairs , and , in almost all cases , really are so ; but who , on this account only , ought net to be considered aa proper objects , upon whom the law may justly poaroutits vials of vindictive vengeance , but who , on a strict examination by competent authority , would be found fitter to claim tbe attention of the physician than the Judge , and who ought to become residents of an asylum , rather than inmates of a prison .
This , Madam , may be to > ou a new view of this momentous subject : Buffer me , however , meat respectfully to press the most serious consideration of it upon yow attention ; assuring you that it is the deliberate conviction of my mind that it is a view of the matter founded upon philosophical principles ' , which , the more they are examined , the more they will be found in harmony with pure and genuine truth . Before passing oa , it will be necessary to answer an
objection which raiy be urged against tbe doctrine here laid down , and which , at Birab sight , carries with it a considerable appearance of plausibility . It may be aaid tbat if man be ealy . an organised form , receptive of life , and tbat if the life becomes good ox evil according to the quality ofi the form « r Teasel into which it is received , he cas » only be considered in the light of a machine ; and that , consequently ,, be cannot be considered as responsible far kis aots to either God or man . This ia a conclusion , however ,, which the premises by no
means warrant . Let us fos-a moment revert to our former illustration . The musician cannot fee justly held responsible for his non-pceduction of kurmony , or even for his production c £ > discord , from his defective instrument ; but if the means of resbaiag the instrument to order , an& of rectifying its defects , be placed within his reach , to may apdwill bekeld responsible for hia non-application © f these means . Now , this is a case exactly analogous to the oondition of the man who commits a wrime against society from some defect x » his nwntal constitution . Man , be it observe ^ has two minds ; as , animal mind , made up of aytmtions and propensities , which connects him with thft Material world , and which is operated upon by fear v conjoined with hope ; and a rational mind , of wbkh the
constituents are perception and affection , or the faculties of the understanding and the will , whieh ia actuated by hope , aided by fear . This latter mind answers to the musician , and the former la the instrument on whieh he is to operate . The former ia ever active , and tending to some end ; the bitter is pas / ive , until acted npon by some force , out of , and distinct from , itself . Now who does not see that ther&tional mind baa tbe power of either guiding and seeking to r « e # fy tbe constitutional defects of the animal mind , or of submitting to the domination of its aonsaUeas and propensities , till itself becomea dead , stupid , and sensualized to an incalculable degree j asd having this power , are not two things as clear aa » mathematical demonstration?—First , —That « ery man who is not absolutely insane , ia MCQuntabfc to bk M « fcer for ( be
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use or abuse of those powers with wbicb he has mercifully endowed him ; and , second , tbat in all cases , when it can bo fairly presumed that crime is the vesulfe of constitutional deficiency , it is tbe duty of society to adopt such aaysten of criminal jurisprudence , as shall have a direct and powerful tendency to > aid the rational mind i&ita endeavours , by the operation of hope and fear s * principles ,. te > correct the defects of the animal mind , by acting " upovit » fear and hope , as sensation * , for the pwpose of elevating them int » principles , and then of bringing it interstate of harmeay and accordance witb iteelf ;^ tp t . *» Uiebeing wb » entered hte prison hogae a detestajgjWy society , any return to the worid a regefflw ^ wf ^ ftforme * , and rational man . I shall peint out to joor Majesty , hj and bye , how this mott desirable end nay be Aceompfebed . - _ _
The next Muoe of crime to which I am to direcs your Majesty ' s attention , is the misarrangeittenfcj of society . This-is a cause so pfoliftc , tbat tbe stoutest heart might well shrink from the coateraplatico of ia . But these are * ot the times , aad , especially , this is not the subject , when and on whieh , truth should be called upon to wU her head before a shrinking and sickly sensibility . ' Ho , Lady , the foundations of all social order are s&aken ; a moral earthquake is approaching , which , if not prevented by timely and practical refenn ,.-may involve the throne , the altar , and the cottage ift one eommon ruin . This is no time
to prophecy smooth things . You are surrounded by base and wicked factions , whose mean and selfish designs are alike treasonable towards their deceived and deluded Queen , and an oppressed and Buffering people . I am compelled to atate harsh truths , but I am actuated by the most respectful feelings , and those feelings impel me to try , if possible , to bring soma little of the true state of the nation beneath the eye of royalty . I have no hesitation in saying , and 1 am certain that a Parliamentary inquiry , honestly conducted , would establish the fact beyond question or dispute , that more than half the crime fwhich is
committed in the United Kingdom arises from a want of the comforts and necessaries of life ; and this want ia the result of the arrangements of society : by which various classes of society are made to have separate * and conflicting interests , and by wbicb , in addition to thia , vast numbers of the most industrious population upon earth are compelled to steal , cheat , or starve . You , Madam , know nothing of all this ; you know not , that , within sight of your royal residence , a mass of misery exists , which it would be impossible to flntt in a community of people who were in any considerable degree actuated by the just and
generous spirit of that religion , of which externally we make such loud and boastful profession . Our merchant * ore princes , and bur traffickers , the honourable of th « earth ; but , think not , Lady , that tbe amount of the revenue , and' the vast quantities of our exports , aid true 8 igna of prosperity , while children must labour and fathers wander about the streets in idleness ; while we are sending clothing to every quarter of th globe , our own artisans being in want and rags ; and while those Who work can , in thousands of instances ,, by incessant toil , gain only a bare subsistence ; ten *
of thousands being destitute of all employment , compelled to seek a shelter within the walls of a Union Workhouse , separated from the partners of their life , and tbe children of their love , and tempted , in the bitterness of their anguish , to curse even their existence . This state of things will go on till the last spark of endurance is burnt out ; and then come the hurricane which our rulers have not the sagacity to foresee , and which , when it doea come , they will , most assuredly , have no power to overcome . I feel a heart-sickness come over me , aa I proceed in the contemplation of this appalling subject
We have perpetual complaints , especially from tha religious public , about the terrible increase of crime , and the demoralisation of the people . But why so ready to complairi , and so backward in their efforts to remove the cause ? I admit the existence of crime to , a fearful extent , but I know what human nature ia ; and while the people are atarving , I see nothing to be wondered at in the increase of crane . The land is filled with drunkenness , why ? because the opening of drunkeries , in every street almost , ia encouraged and promoted for the sake of revenue , and thus the nation's so-called greatness , is sustained upon the wretched foundation of the people ' s vices .
Our gaols are fitted with poachers and smugglers , made such by . our iniquitous and unjust laws . Thousands of our young men are forced into the paths of vice and immorality ; thousands of our once innocent and happy maidens eat the bread of shame ; thousands of the fathers and mothers of Great Britain bow down their heads with sorrow to the grave ! Why f because the social , —pardon me , Madam , I should have said the anti-social arrangements of societyhave paralysed the efforts of honest industry ,
so tbat marriagea cannot with prudence be contracted ; and when their yonng affections are blighted , and the hopes of domestic happiness destroyed , or the . prospect of a respectable settlementjremoved to an indefinite distance , the natural result must be that a deluge of immorality will overspread the land . If we will thus madly sow the wind , we cannot reasonably expect other than that we shall reap the whirlwind . . I Lave yet much more to say on this momentous subject .
I am , Madam , Your Majesty " a faithful and obedient subject and servant , NUMA . London , January 9 th , 184 * .
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THE WELSH VICTIMS . Everything relating to these objecta of Whig oppression will be read with interest by our readers . We therefore cive the following letter , forwarded by Zephaniah Williams to his wife , which has been * handed to U 3 for publication 1—Mandarin Ship , Hobart Town , 3 rd July , 1840 . Mv Dearest JoaH >—We arrived here on the 30 tb > of June last , after a yery long voyage , but a mosV pleasant one . We are- this- day to be sent to Porfc Arthur , the penal settlement of this colony ; andi . through the humane-, kind , and benevolent intercesaiaat of the Doctor , I am- given to understand that I am > fe > be employed in my . old line of business , that isy looking afteror managing , coal works , &c .
, I informed jotehrmy last , sent from the Cap » of Good Hope , that the Doctor bad shown ua every respect ,, and has done all that lie » in his power for us , both . oa _ tbe voyage , and siaee with the Governor of the « olonj ^ which prevailed in securing , me the situation of agent ,, or , what is termed in this- country , overseer .. Ii ant now writing in haste , not Knowing what monsnfc . w * are to be senttaPort Artbar-I shall , therefore , conclude hoping that y&u * areas ; in good health , as tfeia leaves me at present . 1 > hofft and trust tbat the people of Great Britaia haw no * forsaken «» ,. but' tta&tHey will eventually succeed in restoring me to . your society once more ; foirwiihaot you my life is most * miserable , and evoE-wilLb * . I grieve f 3 r . n 0 tb . ing hub tli « loss of your society , and the
childreaV ' to whom , i am attached , witsuajrery tie of affeotian , asmaneaa . be . Hoping the time , is ¦«* far distaefc . when Ii shall once more » a reunited to you , apd nev « more be separated until dtfdh , I abali write to yoa again the very fiast- opportunity , whvavl hope I shall be able to give y « UjSomfe eonsolatio ^ i at presaat I ean give you noaa , nor j « t a description of tkeooontry , no more thaaiii anpmrs to be a beautiful country » nd climate . Although » ow in the depth of winter , the trees are greeoi . and , m toe as it is i in Wales ia September . Pro-ccdon * aad clothing , j I understand , are dear in this country . Bread 3 ^ d . per pound ; better , 2 a . and 2 s . 6 d . ^ cheesy is . 6 d . and 2 s . ;
mutton , fteui ? d . to 10 d . ; beef ,. Jfii . ; -. to ** Sk ; sugar , 40 . per pound . When I write nexfc , Iihop * l shall be able to give you . a better account an&deBcri $ bktt of the country and mysalF , Frost , and Jowa .. W «* m still together , and liksiy to 1 » for some \ fcne ,. b « A nhat their occupation oa- employment will se » I da sot know , neither do they yet I feel exceedingly asxious to hear from you . Hoping yon will write to me as soon aspessible after receiving this , giving me an account of joorself and the oountry , likewise friends , and re ^ l » ih » , I remain , dear wife , Tour most affectionate husband , ZEPHAMAH WlLLIA . * 3 k
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Upwards of 100 seamen , connected witk Newrcastle-upbnrTyne and Sunderland , perish ** ia the storms of NoTember . Republicanism akd Religion . —Xne Republican ! are the most " religious people in the world , and they have no Established Church , tithes , or Churchrates ; and whilst every inhabitP ^ t claims and exercises as a right the unlimited / reedom of opinion on all religious subjects , no mar , j n remt Britain dares to express an opinion ex . eept at the risk of an indictment , at the enit p ? the Crown , or at that of some concealed association of fanatics , many of whom are , and most of "whom may be , the vilest characters iu ; sooiety . On this point , which system ia most favourable . to religious liberty or to freedom of the Bund ! - » epul >' ac » ai 8 m or Monarchy . —JPuWioofa .
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J | THE NORTHERN STAR . ¦ / . ; - -. \ : , .: ; ' . ^ ::: - - ^ ^ 'Z' ^ f ^ , "' . ' ' .: ¦"'"•¦ ¦' ¦¦ ' ' ' - ' = ' .- ' ' ¦ - ' ¦ ' ¦ .. " ' r - ~ - *'> 71 \ I iti »\ ! ¦ . ! ¦ . . ' ¦ .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Jan. 23, 1841, page 7, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1093/page/7/
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