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THE chartists and land T0 MEMBER S.
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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** S ? has " been a busy week with me , „ a therefore , you * m aot ^ P ** ton £ H ^ ffl D reparing to receive the fortunate «« its to be located here on Monday next , Occup *" ectt 0 be honoured with the com-* of af feff Members of Parliament , to I * ^ I have promised such a treat and sur-^ T-sthev have never had ; and when I T 1153 * tee not a few of your order to come iQf : Scre for yourselves , from a peep at the ¦ -lire as to what the full-length picture of znihtbeade **
SnisVlorv . o .. The Committee on our Company met yes-! } 3 V ( Tuesday , ) and meets again on Friday ; h t very properly that Committee has prohill & the publication of garbled reports , until the inquiry is concluded , and then all will be ubli- betl ' in the shape of a Report , and you ^ all have all , and then the poor will be able % iuJ'S ss te the mode in which their affairs ijsve been transacted . On Monday , after a very busy day , I leave { ,- mail train for Birmingham , in order to be ^ gooo time on Tuesday to meet my Sheffield friends .
j promise all who come here on Monday g ^ 3 treat as they have never had . They Jar also see Lowbjlkds , which is close by , a nd theD they can judge of the effect of Labour upon the Land . Your faithful Friend , FsiltGUS' O'CnSSOB .. ¦ Thursday Night .
P . S . —At half-past eleven o ' clock this ffiornirig I received a letter from Mr Jones , announcing his arrest , and asking me to become one of his Bail ; and considering the liberty of our members—even such as they enjoyed—of more importance than my presence at Snig ' s End , I arrived in town shortly after four o ' clock , saw the solicitor , and made arrangenunts for the liberation of Mr Jones .
Now , my friends , I have often reminded you of the necessity of being prepared with the means of defending our party , an omission upon your part which has , upon several occasions , pat me to great inconvenience and expense ; and no « - that the oppressors have again resorted to the terrors of the law , under the certfcintf of conviction , let my appeal upon this occasion not be in vain . 1 have given direction that the best Counsel shall be engaged for all , as ifc is a novelty in our movement , and my pride to boast of it , that no Chartist in my time has ever gone to trial without being defended by the ablest men at the Bar .
lou may rest assured that this precaution , of itself , has converted many to our principles . Let us not , theu , allow the Government or the country to suppose that we are less protective of our friends now , than we were when Chartism was but in its infancy , and the expense of sustaining and defending it devolved upon s small minority of the poorest of the poor .
You are aware that in Lancashire , in Yorkshire , and in London , many Chartists have to be tried : and that those trials come on instantaneously . Mr Jones , and those who have been apprehended for dknces . said to be committed in London , will be tried next week , and , therefore , my application i ? , that every man will send his mite by Post-office orders , payable to me . and addressed to the Northern Star
Office , 16 , Great Windmill-street , London . I have to remind you , that time presses , and that the work must " be done ; and , in conclusion , 1 ask the Attorney-General , or any black-letter lawyer in England ,, to point me out one word of sedition in the speech for which Mr Jones has been committed . But , Chartists , I told yon in 1 S 39 , that if wearing red night-caps , fasting and praying , would secure Labour ' s rights , that these acts would be looked upon as seditious .
But , Chartists , fear not ; for neither the power of the tyrant nor the terror of the law shall turn us from our course , hut , on the contrary , wed us to our principles . 3 F . O'C .
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TO THE CHARTISTS OF GREAT BRITAIN . Brother Democrats , Another proscription and persecution of the advocates of the Charter has begun . Whilst 1 write , Ernest Jones and many other good men are languishing in the prisoa-cells to which alarmed oppression has consigned them . I appeal to you to d > your duty by forwarding your contributions to the NATIONAL DEFENCE AND VICTIM
FUND , to the care of Mr O'Connor , immediately . The Tirr . es has avowed that your enemies mean to make short work with your friends . You , therefore , will see the necessity of wasting no time in throwing the shield of your protection over the persecuted patriots and their greatlv-wronged families . As editor of the Northern Star , as ( although a young man ) an old Chartist , and as one prepared ° to do to the utmost extent of my humble means what I ask you to do , I feel myself justified in adding my voice to the ap . neaJsofWTr O'Connor and the Chartist
Executive . } For the sake of our holy ' cause , I conjure you to rush to the assistance of the martyrs . Tens of thousands , of you kaow the talents and burning patriotism of the man whom I am proud to call my friend—ERKEST JONES . M ; my a time you have rent the skies with your enthusiastic plaudits of his eloquent , soul-stirring outpourings in vindication of your rights antf denunciation of your oppressors . You who cheered him prove your sincerity by rallying around him now . Let his persecutors see that he has thousands and tens of thousands of friends—real friends , who will stand by both him and his family .
Aud Williams , Sharp , FusselL Vernon , and the brave men of Bradford , Bingley , and Manchester—these , too . demand your aid . Let there be no favouritism . Remember that an iniurv done to the humblest in our ranks is a blow " to us ail . Let , then , all the persecuted patriots exper ience your sympathies and enjoy your protection . Let not ihe indiscreet words or deeds of any of our unfortunate brothers debar them from your aid ; over-zeal , with all its faults , is preferable—infinitely preferable to its opposite falling . Up , then , and be doing . Remember that "Ibo-s who psrsit opprf « . -lon share the crime . " G . JULIAN HARNEY . ZMhern Star Office , June 8 th , 1848 .
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PLAN OF ORGANISATION FOE IHE NATIONAL CHARTER ASSOCIATION op GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND , ABrPTKD BT THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY , MAY , 1848 , TO OBTAIN THE SPEEDY KXACIHENT OF THE PEOPLE'S CIIARTER . I . —CONDITIONS OF MEMBERSHIP , Acquiescing in the objects , and being enrolled in tha books of the Assiciation . II . —DISTRICT AND LOCAL ORGANISATION . The country to ba divided into districts and localities . A district to be formed by the union of contiguous localities . A locality to ba sub-divided into wards—a ward into classes . A ward to consist of one hundred , a class of ten members .
III . —OFFICERS . 1 . —An Exitutive Committee , coneistiDg of five persons , to he elected for the current jear , by the members of the Association , in accordance with instructions to be issued , one month prior to the date of the election , by the Executive Committee then in office . 2 . —Financial Oficsrs . —k treasurer , three trustees , and two auditors , to be elected uv accordance with instructions issued by tha Executive Committee . 3 .-iCommu' ! toners . —Twenty commissionera to be elected at the tame time , and in tue same manner as the Executive ; and , in the event of any vacancy or vacancies occurring in the latter body , the conraissioner or commissioners receiving the greatest number of votes shall fill np the place or places go vacated .
1—Local Ojjicers— Consisting af a conned , treasurer , secretary , wardmen . and class leaders , to be elected by the localities . h .-Bislritl Cheers . —To consist of delegates from the localities in ine district ; such delegates , at their first meeting , to appoint from their body a treasurer and secretary for the current year .
IV . —PUSD 3 . 1 . —Association Fund . —A Liberty _ Fund' of £ 10 , 000 to be raised by voluntary subscription . 2 . —Local aod District Funds . —To ba raised and contralled by the localities and districts . V . —BANK . The National Land and Labour Bank . VI . —BUT 1 E 3 OP OFFICERS . I . —SKCCI 1 TE . To superintend the movement , perfect the organisation , and direot it 3 powera ; te publish frequent reports of their proceedings , and of the state of the movement ; to issue weekly financial statements ; and a quarterly balance sheet ; to publish tracts and addresses when necessary ; to convene an Assembly of the people ' s representatives in case of emergency , and te appoint & secretary or secretaries out of their own body .
2 . —HKiKCML OFJICEBS . Treasurer . —To keep an account of all menies received on behalf of tie Association ; to invest the lime in the names of the trustees , retaining a sum aot excesding £ 100 , to meet the current expenditure ; to honour no draft unless previously ri ^ ned by three of the Executive , and to withdraw no money from the tank unless on an order thus signed , and countersigned by the trustees . Trmtui . —To invest , in conjunction with the treasurer , the monies of the Association , and to sign do document for the withdrawal of any Euch monies , unless previeusly signed bv three of the Exscutive . Auditors — To audit the quarterly balance sheets , » Ed report thereon to the members ef the Asso » ciithn .
S . —COHHIBSIOHESB . To carry into practical operation the instrnctions of the Executive , and to ba under the control of that body . 4 . —LOCAL omCEBS . Council , Treasurer , and Secretary . —The council to keep , through their secretary , a register of the names of the members in their respective localities ; to furnish a weekly statement of the increase or decrease ofmemberstothedistriofc secretary , and to report as to the general and financial state of their localities . . Wardmtn . —To have tha superintendence of their respective wards , under the direction of tke local council . , . , , Class Leaders . —To make themselves acquainted with the residences of the members composing their respective classes , and to communicate to them the instructions received from the wardmen .
5 . —DISTSTCT OFHCEBS . To keep np an active superintendence over the localities forming their district ; their secretary to famish a weekly report to the Executive , stating the number of membara in each locality , and the total in each district ; likewise the Etate of trade , the general feeling of the people , and the movement of all public bodies . Local and district secretaries and treasurers to farnisb . a certification of their election , together with their respective residences , to the Executive , and £ o use , in conjnnctioa with the other officer , their b 2 st endeavours to carry out t he instructions of that body . TIL—SALARIES .
ExecutivB .- ~ £ 2 per week ; when travelling , secondclass fare and 2 s . 6 d . per day for expenses . Ccmmiirionm—To be paid , only when employed , &i the same rate as the Executive .
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CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN THE EXECUTIVE OF THE NATIONAL CHARTER ASSOCIATION AND THE GOVERNMENT . Whitehall , June 1 , 1848 . Sir , ~ I am directed by Secretary Sir George Grey to inform you , that he bas laid before the Queen the Address transmitted to him for that purpose in your letter of the 30 th ult . I am , Sir , Your obedient servant , . G . C . Lewis . Mr P . M . M'Douall .
Literary Institute , Jonn-street 3 Tottenham-court-road , June 5 th , 1848 . Sib , —I have . to acknowledge the receipt of yours of the Isfc . instant , informing us that our Address to the &ueen had been laid before her Majesty . 1 am instructed to inquire whether her Majesty was graciously pleased to ^ receive that Address—whethex . any commands have been issued regarding it—and whether it is the intention of her Ministers to advise the Queen to consider the same , with the view of complying with the prayer of Her Majesty ^ faithful subjects . " " * -
1 am directed to adopt this course , in consequence of having read an account of the gracious reception of a deputation from Dublin , having fer its object a political change greater ( if possible ) , than that which we have sought to effect , and which political deputation you , no doubt , advised her Majesty to receive . Your obedient servant , P . M . M'Douall . The Right Honourable Sir George Grey .
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TO LORD JOHN RUSSELL . Literary Institute , John-street , Tottenham-court-road , June 6 , 1848-My Lord , We , as members of the Executive Committee of the National Charter Association , feel it to be our duty now to address you . We read with much astonishment a report of your declaration in the House of Commons , " That you did not believe the people desired the Charter , " aad having seen no contradiction given to that statement by you , we consider it to be correct . We have accordingly made arrangements to convince you , on Whit-Monday , that your sup « position is utterly unfounded .
You have thrown down the gauntlet—we accept the challenge . Our intentions are to hold peaceful demonstrations . Our efforts shall be , as they have been , earnestly employed in the preservation of life and property . We have deprecated all rioting . We have repudiated the violent language used at Clerkenwell meeting . We wish to ascertain your intentionswe have reason to do so / after the experience the people have had in this metropolis of the murderous acts of your police .
They and their associates have been the aggressors , the disturbers of the peace , and the destroyers of property . We are fully informed of the atrocious system adopted by the police . They are accompanied night and day by idle boys , who infest all meetings and break windows on a signal given by the police , so as to justify an attack upon a portion of a peaceful meeting , discussing in small groups the merits and demerits of the speaker . We are glad to perceive that you admit the rig ht ; of public meetings at seasonable hours to discuss grievances , and very much doubt whether Sir George Grey has been correctly reported , when he is represented to say last nig ht in the House of Commons , that it is the intention of
Government to put a stop to all meetings . If such report is true , it would imply that you were afraid of a public denial being gives to the public challenge of the Prime Minister of Great Britain . We deeply regret that several meetings have not been allowed to disperse without being partially involved in a conflict with the police , who were kept in ambush until the greater portion of the people had dispersed—who where then let loose , half drunk
and completely mad , upon the people , and who in their ferocious onslaught afc Banner ' s Fields , paid no regard , and shewed no mercy , either to age , sex , or condition . We trust that no such disgraceful assaults will he sanctioned by you on Monday , whilst we are peacefully and constitutionally assembled , to report the reception of our Memorial to the Queen ; and to prove or disprove your statement in the House of Commons . If such
are made , the peop le will hold you responsible , according to the constitution . : We respectfully but firmly inform you , that the people of this country are not beasts of burthen , and must not be bludgeoned out of their right of meeting . Misgovernment , loss of trade , and consequent starvation , have already sapped , in a great measure , submission to the law , and obedience to the magistrate . Webeg you to pause before you drive the people any further . We call upon ; you at once to abolish the right of public complaintthe necessity for public meetings—by granting to all men of a sane mind , unconvicted of
crime , and above twenty-one—such persons having a settled residence—the power , through the Suffrage , of abolishing their g rievances in a peaceful and constitutional manner . We beg to impress upon your mind , that the Chartists , as a body , have not taken part in the riots which have occurred , but have heard with abhorrence and indignation of the treatment which the people—the toiling producers and tax payers—have received at the hands of the police , who are not only , as you well know , obnoxious and expensive , but unconstitutional , as every armed Government placed beyond the control oT Parliament , must be .
Trusting that you , will not force US to defend our ri « ht of public meeting , and perfectly satisfied that all the Chartists wilJ assemble and disperse peacefully , if " ¦ " molested , We remain , Your Lordship ' s obedient Servants , P . M . M'DOUALL , J . M'CRAE . ERNEST JONES , SAMUEL KYDD , JAMES LEACH .
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^^^^ Ug ^^^^^ Ku ^^ BiMi ^ BvSiAflB ^^*^*^ " ^ EXECUTIVE NOTICE .
METROPOLITAN DEMONSTRATION . The Executive having summoned the secretaries of all localities in London , it was unanimously determined to hold a great meeting on Whit Monday , at Bishop Bonner Fields , at half-past Two o clocfc , and to disperse before Six o ' clock , or earlier if possible . The chairman and speakers were likewise appointed , and every necessary arrangement made te ensure the greatest order and regularity . Men of Lendon ! gather in your tens of thousands . N . B .-Collections are to be . nade at all the Demonstrations throughout the country for the Liberty Fund .
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IIeckmoxdwike , liEAB Lbbd 3 . —A lecture will be delivered L-, - ihe R « v . Joteph . Barker , of Wortiey , near Leeds , iu tho Market place , ( weather permittin ?) , if not » at tha Red chapel , top of Heokmondwike , on Wednesday , Juno Hch . Chair to ha taken at half-past seven o ' clock in the evening . A collection will be nude to defray expenses ,
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blushing hardihood , which certainly does the ruffian some credit on the score of ' pluck , ' he boldly announces that' the minority always do governalways must govern—often , it is true , through the means aud under the cloak of the majority , but always really and substantially ! ' After this exhibition , the reader will not be surprised to learn that Knight ' s ' hired' ruffian strongly counsels the government not to make any concession to Chartist demands . The Chartist leaders he describes as S 9 lf-elected ; paid , turbulent , idle , and illconducted , and too frequently Celtic ! The fourfta number contains an article on ' What the
Charti 3 ts want , and how to get it , ' and is every way worthy of being associated with the rich effusion in number' three . The ruffian Announces that hundreds of thousands of the middle classes will join the Tories to ' fight with determined resolution against the Charter . ' Take it ( or all in all , the pretended' Voice of the Peoj 9 / e ' wasa most shameless and malignant concoction of ignorance and fraud ; every way worthy , however , of the labour-grinding school of which it avowed itself the champion . But it overdid its work . ' Toe People' repudiated it , and tbe bourgeoisie were afraid of it . To use its own words , it possessed' the serpent's venom , hut hot the shining ! skin . ' Its . unspeakable vulgarity was disgusting
even to its dupes . ' Whilst' exceeding the devil in point of malignity / it had not the art to conceal the cloven foot , or attempt to cover the horns . Hence its pitiful wind-up at the fourth number , killed by public contempt . In its last dying speech the ! wretched culprit avowed that ita grand design had been to put down the Chartist leaders , whom it called ' bull-frogs of the darkness , ' but , alas , it added , ' Our publication has not been successful , ' and ' we cannot persevere against coldness and neglect . Of course this very pretty speculation will have bled the not too plethoric pocket of Mr Knight . Verdict , i Sarved him right ! ' Public contempt has decreed , the epitaph for his bantling ' The Voice , '' Here lies a liar !'
The heroic patriot John Mitchel is now on his way to that far-off shore where his , and his country ' s oppressors , hope to break his heart by the Blow tortures of felon ' s chains , and the anguish of banishment from all he holds dear . The ruffians of the Press-gang may congratulate themselves that they did their best to cause the destruction of the man whose honesty and . nobleness of soul was their shame and humiliation . In the transports of its fiendish
exultation at the conviction and sentence of the patriot , the' bloody old Times' exclaimed— ' We hope that no mawkish and mistaken tenderness will be allowed to interfere with his deserts . He has courted his fate . Let him have it . ' If ever the people of this country acquire power , I trust that no mawkish and mistaken tenderness will be allowed to interfere' with the execution of that stern justice which these bloodhounds of the Press most richly deserve .
For months past the bully of Fleet-street , commonly known b y the style and title' of the Weekly Dispatch , has been amongst the foremost in hounding on the government to destroy John Mitchel . That having been accomplished , the Fleet-street bully turns round and affects sympathy for the doomed patriot . This disgusting hypocrisy is even more revolting than the bloodthirsty howlings of the truculent Times . I might extend the list of Press-gang assassins to
the entire Press of England , with one exception ; for , so far as I can learn , the Northern Star is the only journal published in this country which has had the honesty and courage to defend and vindicate John Mitchel . I must , however , single out one journal for notice , which , b y a perfection of villany not often attained , has managed to exhibit its malice towards the proscribed patriot in a form so revolting as almost to defy belief . But there shall be no mistake . I will quote the infernal concoction word
for word . The Examiner of Saturday , June 3 rd , in an article entitled— ' The new scheme of the Confederates' has the follewing paragraph : — Bat ono mistake should bt guarded agalnit . Mr Do ° htney rares * bout Mrs Mi ' . ohel ; but conceding to that lad ; every merit that can be claimed for her , and every sympathy too , wa beg to euggeattbst there m 3 y bo other wives who tnt ' -y te as isnpatient of the yoke of
matrimony a * of the yoke of England—eager tor the Repeal of the Union in mare respects than one , and who may ba transported niih joy at tha transportation of their husbands . Irish husbands must tako cars how they yield too reidily to the ' Go whore glory waits thee ' from their wives . A man should make qaite sure tbat hta reraeval from his country will be a blessing to It , and that it is not his wife alone who wilt ba the gainer by being quit of him . Though , to be sure , the onances r . r , i thnt tuo foe of un ' on in one instanoo ia the ourco of
it in another . Tnere is no necessity for engaging in the loathsome task of dissecting this horrible specimen of rotten-hearted depravity . The damnable meaning of the ruffanly Fcribe ' s calumny is too plain to be mistaken . Thank God , as John Mitchel ia not likely to see many newspapers , it is very unlikely that he will see the Examiner . I , therefore , venture u hope that he will be spared the maddening misery of knowing of this foul wrong , and being unable to glut the thirst for vengeance which would naturally take possession of him . It was cowardly—unmanly enough—to strike at the chained patriot ineapable of
striking again ; but how infinitely more foul and unnatural is the attempt of this miscreant of the Examiner to injure the fair fame of the defenceless , suffering wife , whose virtues , public and private , are the thems of popular admiration from one end of Ireland to the other . By all means , 'let ruffianism meet with its appropriate punishment , ' and let the ruffian of the Examiner have ' his deserts . ' Shame u |) on this anonymous beast ! Marked by the convenient ' we' he is safe ; but ' the curses of hate and the hisses of scorn , from millions who honour John Micihel , will reward the filthy Examiner . I am only sorry that the individual writer cannot be singled out ; if tbat could be
His name- —hta btimaD name—to every eya Tho climax 6 f all BOOM , BllOUld flUDg Ofl ( ligll , Exaltod o ' tr his lass abhorr'd compeers—And festoiir . g ia tUo Infamy of years , ' Great was the joy of our ' best possible instructors' after the ' 10 th of April . ' 'We have put down Chartism' roared the Puddledock Thunderer , and every vile and venomous creature ' after its kind ' in the ranks of the press-gang , echoed and reechoed the cry . I have seen Chartism ' put down ' before to day , and , therefore , could measure the folly of the frantic foob , and howling knaves , who proposed to celebrate ' the triumph of order' by gorging the ' special' bludgeoners , and erecting
public monuments , to commemorate their own cowardly fri g ht or hypocritical villany . The monument maniacism was toug hed down . After co lecting some thousands of pounds the committee dissolved . But I beg the working men of England to remember two facts : —1 st . That Her Majnsty and the members of the Royal Family' gave a thousand ponnds towards a subscription for the purpose of raising a monument or monuments , to record' the defeat of tke Chartists on the IQM of April ; 2 nd . That the Committee for getting up this public disgrace included the following persons : — Bis Grate the Arahbishop of Sir Win . Clay , Bart . M . P ., Canterbury Si < " Walter R . Farquhpr , The Most Noble tbo Mar- Bart .
qula of Lnnsdowne , KG . SlrMoeeB Montefioro . Bnrt . The Right Hon . Lord John Rear-Admiral BowU a Russell , M P . Charles Suiter , Esq , The Rig ht Hon . Sir Qtorgo Chairman oj th » Poor £ « w Grey , Bart ., M . P . Commission The Lord Bishop of London . WHlinm Cubiil , Esq , The Loid Biihop of Win- W . F . A . D » l « ne , E < q . Chester Gcoge Cnrr Olyn , E ? q . L ' outonanr . GeEeral tho Via . George Hudson , Esq ., M , P , count Iliirdmge , G C . B . Henry KingBcote , E : q . The Bight Bon Sir . Robert Richard Mayno Esq ., Peel , Bart ., M . P . Commissioner of Police The Right // m . ihe Viscount Charles Pearson , Esq ., M . P Morpefh , M f , S . H , Pe < 0 , Esq ., UP , Tfio Esrl of Arundel and G . RsJmayne , Biq . Samy , M , P , David Salomons , Esq , Lord Ashley , HP . Alderman
The Rujhl Hon . Loni R . IJ , Secley , E : q . Robert Orosvenor , M . P . Lord Stanley The ' liberals' mid ' philanthropists' included in the above list , will , of course , be gratefully remernbered at the next general election ! As to the aristocrats and ' oily men of God' they of course but < followed after their kind . '
Char . ism which was ' put down , ' and according to the PreBB-gang , utterly extinguished on tha 10 th of April , apptara to be endowed with pbccix-like powers for no the 29 th ef May , the extinguished am was found to be all alive again , and —if ? rm rct&j ' credit their journals—frig htening the lourgeohie ' from their propriety . ' Poor fellows ! The measured tread of marching thousands and ths
heaven-splitting shouts for ' Mitchei' anil the ' Charter' quite obfuscated the potbellyocracy . Of course such an ' indecent disturbance of public order was not to be tolerated , and so the rascals of the Press-Bang were set on to write lip another panic . The Timb 3 suddenly changed its IW , and proclaimed itself a liar ; here is a s « n , ;; le : — ' Chartism is neither dead nor sleeping . Triv inake was scotched not killed on the 10 th of April . Again 'The nuisance ( of Chartist procrasions should be put a stop to . Nip it in the bud , or , to
use a more . 'ippropriate figure crack the riraeon in his shell . ' Still true to its old character , combining the ' buffoon' with the ' villain' of : ' ac : political stage , the Times made a despera ' o effort to be facet inns at the expense of the Chartist . ' If , said the Times—If tho Cbunists would assume a more picturasqaa exterior — i ; they could wear some BUOh costume SB that of biTMij ' . Btj '» ' Beefeater */ or sloshed ' ; i < mas « and red ra .-rote > boots , and if they would rsU / a tbe monotony of lUe process , on wish an occasional trans , parency of firbwork , perhaps they might be born ? . Bufca & set of grim , dirty , aad diFcor . tented men , trudging with ft hB » £ . i ! ojf ait through the streets , witb n hk' i'OUB sort of mystery as to what may Sa in their heads or their pockute , constitute a icene parfcotly abhorrent to tbe taste of a genuinp , businesslike Londoner , dividing sis tlmo between
h' . s counter end bis fireside . on tlmo between h ' . s counter end tis fireside . The repeat of the soap tax , and labour for ih& unwilling idlers , would dispel grirnness , dirt , ruid discontent ; and it is precisely because the Chartists desire to look more like 'Beefeaters , ' that ti : > 5 y demand the one thing needful—political equalily . The delicate hint of the Times , that fireworks aright make Chartist processions more endurable , appear ? to me to savour strongly of' Swing . ' In tha days of the Reform Bill agitation , the Times advocated brick-bats and bludgeons as the means necessary to effect the conversion of the Tories . Lately the
Times has again turned ' Reformer , ' am ! pnrhapg this call for' fireworks' to enlighten anti-Ryi ' ormers is only its old tactics revived in a new and more striking shape . But tbat there may be no intake , I would suggest to the Times to put its preachingi into practice . When the liberators of Switzerland saw that the hour had come to summon their con . federates to action against Austria , they created their signal fires by applying the torch to their own dwellings . Everybody knows that in the disgraceful sense of the term , the limes is ' Swiss' enoncfi for anything , hut it it sufficiently Sa'iss to imitate the compatriots of William Tell , and make of Printing House-square a burnt sacrifice ( a ' firework' on a large scale ) at the shrine of freedom ?
You will remember how mercilessly the Times ridiculed the Chartists for not fighting on ' t ' .: s 10 th . of April '—how in every form the English language admits of , it slandered the working men of England as cowards and poltroons ; it is , therefore , worth while to quote from the Times on the Bradford affair : — £ si us do the Chartists justice . If fljhtiag with ' plaok agalnit special constables and police could maks s . revo * lutioo , thoso who fought at Bradford eujht to bave eucoeeded , II desperato resistance and desperado on . tlaagbts could overturn t io established state of things , the men of Bradford might have fijiirednoiv as Ledru-Rolliai and Alberts ( outriera ) . But they forgo ; the odds » f o ' net which tbe ? ha j to contend .
The Times then goes on to explain that the principal of the ' odds' against the working men of this country is . the hostility of the middle classes , and avows that were the English bourgeoisie likft those ! of the continent , the ouvriers of Bradford ' might ; have stood up longer—^ erA < y ; 8 successfully—against i the body of soldiers which was oppposed to them . ' : Here is confirmation of what I have so often asserted that the middle classes are the great criminals of , society , and responsible for all the oppression and i misery under which the people groan .
I The Times , of June 6 th , furiously demands ' the full execution of the law ' to put down ' tumultuous meetings ; ' announces that ' any measures' of repression' will' receive the sanction of public opinion , ' [ by which it means the sanction of the bourgeoisie } provided the said measures ' be sufficiently energetic , ' that is , sufficiently bloody and brutal . The Times then goes on to threaten the " rioters" with the vengeance of the exasperated military an . ] police , backed by thousands of the shopocrauy , who , « come what will , ' are determined to prevent the working classes playing the part performed by the ouvriers of Paris , Berlin , aud Vienna .
The Times theu goes on to quote the dicta of judges of thetimes of Sidmodth and Castlehkagh , as to what constitutes unlawful meetings , and the liability of joining in them . The article concludes by advising the dispersion of open-air meetings by force , and the arrest of Ernest Jones , and other Chartist speakers , promising , that if arrested , there will be no difficulty of obtaining a verdict of guilty from a jury of London merchants and tradesmen . Tne Tory Morning Post , and the Radical Morning
Advertiser , are equally liberal in advising the government to ' put down' the meetings of the people by force , and punish the' leaders' under judge-made law . The'liberal' Examiner abuses the magistrates for dealing too leniently with the ' rioters , ' and the ' philosophical' Spectator ' wonders why any such meetings as those held on Clerk ^ invell Greea and Bishop Bonner ' s Fields are ' tolerated ' by the ' authorities !' You see they are all alike ,
Tenta-ra-rara , roguot all !' The dodge , too , that was worked so arduously be . fore the ' 10 th of April , ' is again in course of operation . Letters manufactured in Downing-street , or Printing House-square , but signed ' A Special , ' ' Six Specials , '' A Barrister , &c , &c , are now appearing daily in the Times , demanding in terms of assumed indignation , to know why the police don ' t break more heads ; why the soldiers have not orders to fire upon ' the mob ; ' why the speakers are not arrested , and means taken to transport them , &c , &e . Thus is the pretended ' public opinion' manufactured to justify tha forthcoming ' vigorous measures , ' which , in addition to the Gagging Bi-1 , tha Whigs will no doubt inflict upon this country .
But these ' measures of repression , ' that is , measures of tyranny and brutality , blood and vengeance , the Whigs would never dare of themselves to propose { they are hounded on to their infamous work by the ruffians of the Press . How long is' rulfianism' to walk the earth triumphant , fearless of its ' appropriate punishment ? ' ' How long ? oh God ! how long ' . ' L'AMl vv Peuplk .
June 6 th , 1848 . P . S The ruffianly Press-gang have not worked in vain . As two days ago I foresaw , persecution has followed immediately upon denunciation . The Times , which announced the arrest of Ernest Jones before he was arrested , was , from the beginning of the week , fully aware that the government intended to arrest him . Let every Democrateverv true man , rally to the defence of Ernest Jones and the other victims of "Whig tyranny . June 8 th .
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The FOND FOR conveying Mrs Jones to hkr Hubb&nd ( the compatriot of Jobi Frost ) In tha Lilid of his esilo . —The secretary ( Mr Johu Simpson ) ac knowlcdfted from Mr Gilbortson , Carlisle , £ 1 ; Mr Mitchel . trora the ft > ma ! e Chartists of Rochdale , 103 . ; MrBudd , Lincoln , 8 * . ; Mr ¦ Potter , stooktoa & ., MrKendal , Man » fieiu , 63 . ; Mr Chippendale , Otley , 33 4 d . ; Mr A . Leech , Dalston , 3 i . ; Mr Newman , Cambwwell , 2 s . 6 d ; Mr Turner , Rotherhatn Chartfsta . I * . 81 . ; W . N . R ., Manchester , 6 d . The National Victim Committee would urge the friends of MrjJoDes to hi prompt in th if remittance , aa ihe ship will sail in about two months . All subscriptions 'o be forwarded to Mr John Simpson , Elm Cottage , Watetho-Btreet , Camberwell , Londou , to whom Poat Offuo Orders raUBt bo msde payable on behalf of the ctiamitteo . —John Simpson , secretary—Juno 6 ta , 1848 . _ ..
Hull . —A public meeting will be hold m tho Town Hall , on Wkit Monday , the use of which h&S bcenkindlv eranted by the mayor , for the pnrpow of sympathising with Mr MitcUel , and of eipKsBin « our utter abhorrence of the system of packed juritf , and sympathising with £ » wife andhuw y . The committee meet wery . week at Mra Pexto ^ , Terno-rance Hotel , to reeoivo subscriptionsi tir Ue , uSt of Mr Mitchel ' * wife and family . I ho fol-SK perBoiwaroappointed toreOMTe ButacriptionB : m / t O'ivcr grocer , Lower Union-street ; Mr R , Tuk ' y lo b ^ Sueturer , Myton Gate ; Mr Mo . ; yV , publican . Winonlmlce ; Mr Gray , barber ' Viflt-sfoet ; and at the UuA Company a raeehngB orerv Tuo « i . iv and Friday evemagB . Br . uiNoiuk-A demonstration in favour of the P tv-. pli- ' s Charier willtaUe . place on Sun Jay , the 11 vh i nst , » n a piece of ground new the Peoples JIsW , when several eloquent advocates of the peopled rights will address ' . lie tneeting . -A district delegnt * meets
« n will take p 1 = cb at the People ' s IW 1 , Birming . ¦ nc will tiika pbc 3 at the People ' s Ilall , Birmingham , on Sum ' ay , June 11 th , at eleven o ' clock in . tho forenoon .
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TO THE PEOPLE . The ruffianly Press-Gang . Mr Charles Knight and his ' Voice of the Profitmongers ' -The Patriot Mitchel-The ' Times . '' Dispatch , ' and' Examiner . ' The Chartists—the 10 th of April , and ihe 29 th of May—The calumnies , forgeries , and incitements to despotism and terror ly the Press-Gang .
' Let ruffianism meet with Its appropriate punishmont . Tiheb , June 6 th , 1818 . Friends , Countrymen , and Brothers , The sentence I have culled from the columns of the Times to stand as the text for this letter , will , I am sure , command your approbation . Yes , in the name of Humanity , let ruffianism meet with its appropriate punishment . To such a wish what honest man would hesitate to say 'Amen ? ' Not , at any rate , the men of the people . They have too long suffered frem ruffianism , particularly the ruffianism of the Press-gang ,
When the discovery of printing called the Press into existence , good men imagined that , at last , the means had been found to lift up the prostrated victims of oppression , and put an end to the reign of fraud and force . Events have proved the reverse of this . I acknowledge that the Press has done good service in promoting public enlightenment on some ( subjects ; but , on the other hand , I assert that the Press , as a whole , has done more to prolong the reign of error than to hasten the advent of truth ; and , at this moment , is the great , the principal ,
barrier in the path of popular progression . Of course , I am fully sensible of the immeasurable worth of the journal , through the columns of which I am permitted to address you ; but , in spite of the earnest labours of the conductors of the Star , how little , after all , can they accomplish towards counteracting the evils engendered by the prostituted and partisan papers ; for what can one honest journal effect against the daily and weekly lies , calumnies , and plottings of the vile sheets whose name is ' Legion ?'
A few weeks ago , I addressed to you a letter on 1 The Press-Gang Conspiracy against Liberty , abroad and at home . ' In that letter 1 exposed the infamous plottings of the ' respectable' journals to keep down Chartism , even at the cost of blood , and every vestige of liberty hitherto permitted to the people of this country . The recent pranks of the Press-gang demand a few additional comments . The name of Charles Knight , the publisher of the works of' Tlie Society for the confusion of Useful Knowledge , ' is pretty generally known . He is also , I believe , publisher of the reports , &c . issued by the Poor Law Commissioners . It has been the fashion , with a certain class of knaves and fools called ' Liberals , ' to trumpet forth this ' Knight ' as a great public benefactor—the conqueror of
ignorance and prejudice , by means of cheap publications . In fact , however , like the Chambers' of Edinburgh , he has done a great deal more to poison the stream of knowledge than he ever did to diffuse its life-giving draughts in their natural untainted state . A political economist and Maltliusian , he has hardly issued a solitary publication in which he has not done his best to promulgate the damnable doctrines of the heartless political school to which he belongs . With all his canting about the diffusion of useful knowledge , ' he has ever been the bitter foe of cheap political information , as promulgated throug h the medium of Radical and Chartist stamped and unstamped publications . Of course , he has been not the less violently opposed to the political enfranchisement of the people , as provided for in the Charter .
Recently , the Malthusian bookseller started a new publication , entitled ' The Voice of the People : A Supplement to all Newspapers' Supplementary , that publication certainly was , and something more . The readers of ' all newspapers' seem to have regarded it as superfluous , and , therefore , refused to buy it ; consequently , ' a little month' saw this wretched abortion both commence and terminate its miserable existence . The lamentations of its parent announce , in sufficiently explicit terms , that the untimely end of his mis-shapen bantling has left him a sadder , if not a wiser man 1
Mr Knight s new venture—commenced a week or two after ' the 10 th of April '—was started avowedly for the purpose of putting down Chartism , and succeeded in putting down—itself . The matchltss impudence of its publisher named it' The Voice of the People . ' Had it been called ' The Voice of the Profitmongers , ' or ' The Voice of the Plunderers , ' or ' The Voce of the Pettiest Prig ^ of the Press-Gang , ' the character of the publication would have been much clearer indicated . The first number contained , besides other delicacies , a furious attack upon Mr O'Connor , aud the Land Plan ; but , as the Lion of Chartism did not think the brayings of Ms asinine assailant worthy of notice , I may pass them by . The second number had an article on ' the Movement , ' the principal features of which
were abuse of Mr Feargus O'Connor and Julian Harney , and praise of ' the honest and able' Wilmam Lovett and John Collins , and ' that able , courageous , manly Reformer , ' the ' Whistler ! Lovett . ICollins , and Somervillk ; sublime trinity in unity ? The third number professed to contain an ' Analysis of Chartism ; ' perhaps the most barefaced attempt to ' make the worse appear the better reason' that I ever read . Imagine the sublime impudence of the assertion that ' Trades Unions and Chartist oppressions aro now the only invaders of . the freedom of industry ! ' But this is nothing compared with what follows . The ruflian , mouthing through the medium of Mr Knig ht ' s ' voice , ' denies the abstract right of the Suffrage . He maintains that the majority have no right to rule the minority : and then with an amount of un »
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Cb- . tdos . —An opr-n air meeting will bo held on Ua Ppa ' --h :: ! , r . iar this town , on Whit Monday . Ihe c ^ £ ir nil : b . taken at six e'eiock in the eveniDg . ^ Ttralacv cates o : ' the People's Charter will address tiemeeuci ; . BsiDFOf . d . —A West RidiDg dennn § tration will be M ! d on loiubaw-moor , near Bradford , on Mor . d » y *« l > at eeveo o'clrck in the forenoon . Ernest fas , K ? q .. Mr Wm . Brook , and Mr Shaw , of ^^ s , ^ knceYeral advocates of the People ' s Cacse * Jii eddre < - the m . eiinz—A Weit RtdinK delegate
noting W :, bi , fa . id at the Grazier ' s Inn , Wakefieldrc ! !?» cn 3 ; . Ed . ii m 9 inir < £ , at ; i > ineo ' elock , Jaael 2 cb JT itie Gt : ? . ' : ir ; r ; i-iin committee , vriil meet at the „ ¦ " " - " « er ' s J 2 n . Wakefield-road , on Toftshaw-moor , grille uVLLk in tbe morning , and meet the West ftidir , , d .,, . . , rate . ; - . _ - [ -i , e Chartists of BrAd ord * nl E . ett ; Bj : u-r * orth-baViiin ^ on S un day Uo-E or-or ,, a : tu o ' ewk in the evening . —The J ? 5 CUW : 1 . Q : e- in the Council . rocm , at Wilson ' s V 3 t-re . . ,,- ^ Soutngate , on Sunday ( to-moitow . J a * . t / J ? ' ' ¦ ^ ' - ¦ kfc eveniiis —The members of the I * a-
; { , ' -B- L ? n- Cmi-iiuy jrjii meet mihe Lard-cftce , s , ' , * -- " -ii . an . g-. on Sunday ( to-morrow , ) at * fiwk in iu alitruutn tu elect officeis ior the « xt qaatter . . k « u —A i , ecercl meeting of the Cfcaitist momt , . -Ri li bi uela on Sunday afternoon , in their CK"tog-rcti 3 , Bagai
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TO THE MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL CHARTER ASSOCIATION . Fellow Countrymen , The Ministry have placed a barrier between the people and the throne . There is no hope whatever of your Memorial being presented by a deputation of your body to the Queen . We have already declined sending your Memorials to the Home Secretary , a course which we think would be humiliating to us , and insulting to you .
We have decided upon holding a great demonstration in London , which we hope to be allowed to conduct in a peaceable and orderly manner . For the sake of our political prisoners we shall use . our utmost endeavours to secure a satisfactory termination to the proceedings on Bonner ' s Fields . We have seen Ernest Jones in Newgate , and have great satisfaction in announcing to you that we found him firm , cheerful , and unflinching . Fussell , Sharp , wd Williams , we were np . t . permitted to see .
We have been busily engaged to-day , and shall be constantly employed until a late hour in the ni ^ ht , preparing bail , arranging a Defence Committee for the Metropolis , and preparing for the trials . Nothing shall be neglected on our part , and we call upon thei country to strengthen our hands , in this crisis , by every means in their power , to maintain our sacred cause , and save our friends from the felon ' s fate . Organise ! organise !! organise ! !! Collect money for the Victim and Defence Fund .
Defend the holy and time-honoured right of public meetings to discuss grievances , as we shall do . Respect property . Be not aggressors . Let not our cause be disgraced by riots , nor thrown back for years by partial outbreaks . Defend your liberties and lives like men , and whilst youkeep the law on your side , do not allow it to be broken over your heads . So long as we are at liberty , we shall advise you prudently , firmly , ™ and with that determination which a righteous cause alone can give . Faithfully yours , P . M . M'DOUALL , JOHN M'CRAE . On behalf of the Executive .
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AND NATIONAL TRADES' JOURNAL . ^ «» ^ j ^^ j m—— . ———_— -. ___ . ———^— " ^ " "—¦ ' ' ' " —» i -n-j aa
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VOL-JCLjfo 555 . LONDON , SATURDAY , JUNE \ Q ~ 1848 . ^¦ gJSgJt ,,,,
The Chartists And Land T0 Member S.
THE chartists and land T 0 MEMBER S .
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EXPLANATORY DETAILS . I . —ORGANISATION . The Executive committee beg to impress on al localities the paramount necessity for adhering strict !/ and uniformly to the above Plan of Organisation , and to remicd district aad local officers , that the only test ot membership ef ths Association is acquiescence in its principles , and enrolment of the individual member's name in the books of the local secretary . Ii 13 not requisite that the residence should be entered also . The secretary and treasurer of every district and locality are required to acquaint the Executive with their respective names and residences , aEd particularly requested to carrf spond with them regularly , as specified in the above plan . . The secretary of a district is required to . know tBe respective names and residences of Ik secretaries Of locality in his district . iT
every . , __ Tne secretary of a locality is required to know the respective names and residences of every vrardmate in hislccaVity . .. A wardmate is reqaired to know the respective names and residences of every class-leader m his A class-leader is required to know the respective names and residences of every man in his class .
TI —TKANSU 1 SSI 0 N OF INFORMATION . In csE 9 of the sudden transmission of any information requisite to be known by all the menibara of one or more districts , the Executive shall write , or send , to the ' secretaries of tlio-o districts they deem it necessary to communicate with . _ Oa receiving such message , the district secretary ETCSt immediately convey tbe S 3 me to the eecrefcsriesoftbs localities forming his distnefc : thelocal se ^ r Utj , to the wa ? draate 3 ofthe wards forming bis locality ; tbe wardmate to the class-leaders ia his ward ; the dassJeader to the men forming his class . III . —FUNDS .
1 . —Liberty Fund . —Collecting baoks are to b : issued by the district and local councils for tha pur pose of this fund , aEd the money thus raised is to be transmitted to John M'Crae , Financial Secretary , Literary Institution , Ji-ha-street , Totfenham-courtroad , London . When Po = t-ofSce orders are sent , they ara to be forwarded as above , but to bs made payable to Johh Seweix , Esq ., at the Southwark Po « t-offiee , LondoD . A weekly acknowledgment ot the monies thu 3 received will appear in the Northebs Stab , under the names of the respective VC 2-Local Funds —The districts and localities have full power to regulate their local affairs as they tnink bat ; and to impose any conditions of local membersi io , consistent wita the prinoiples of Democracy , or to ake any arrangements for the wising of local levies that be uned . §
may req _ L ,. , . No portion of ttVLiberty Fusd is to be applied to district &r local expenses .
Th' Executive submit the above Plan of Organisation , in tho belief that is is one easy of «« n »» ff and efficient when in operation . A short *>«»<»»> fs required for the country to lw completely ori ' nSd s short time only is needed to rasa the reonfsite fnnds ; andthu * a fchort time enly Deed dapwl ifthe people wii ! it , before the attainment of tbe Cnaiter . The above Plan and ~ Dltails are to be sold at o , ii per hundred , asd maj be had on application to ' the Executive , and on receipt of the money .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), June 10, 1848, page unpag, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1474/page/1/
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