On this page
- Departments (4)
-
Text (13)
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
-
TO THE LANDLORDS OF IRELASD. 1£TT£B II.
-
Untitled Article
-
Cfcavttgt XntfU&mcr.
-
SERIOUS CHARGE OF FORGERY.
-
YORKSHIRE SUMMER ASSIZES.
-
Untitled Article
-
Untitled Article
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.
-
-
Transcript
-
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.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Untitled Article
jlr L 0 & 2 S a > 'd Gemlemb . n , —la the crotort I gis ' . ed that I had auderta&en & difficult task , yet I -i i >^ i tad not calculated upon one hal f the objections -sfbich po"wer , custom , social and eiissoinnizsnoD , ignorance of passing circumstances , national jndreligions prejudices , . not to speak of politkal bias , ; with 311 ii 2 tT ? t '" of -wedded absurdities , Lad fchroTra in T mT ; each meeting Jne in my progress , or JttEZlting j 3 = in tfca tour of reflection .
H t Lords and G-ertlemen , —An atxious daBra to jujr ^ tie case of my client , the labourer , bcfere yon , jt as early a period as possible , has ind ^ cad me 0 trust , laudably , if not prudently ) to tertm the pgeT of classification , -which should hare been : Firstly jsv material , or barren snrface of the soil , representing rJsr tide to representation : Secondly , responsibility , ex-• esdiuirs of capital , and tenancy , representing the oc-arying tenant ' s title to representation : and , Ttirdlv , labour , "which renders the soil , by cultivation ,
jrailaWe to man ' s uses , and Us title to representation . jfy Lords and Gentlemen , I trust that in the word jerresenta . tion , you "Will not recognise any infraction of BT conditisn to treat my subject "without the introduc-t ban of politics . I do not use the -word here in a j » li- j tical sense ; and before I hare conclnded , I hope to prove thit a "wise , a prudent , a just , and beneficial f exercae of your social power , and a honest exerctee of ! tout trust , as landlords , "would have rendered political ; renresentation almost an obsolete term . A demand for ; political representation has increased in exact jUMbj ton with the abase of social power . ^** -f My liords and Gentlemen , too mil hare learned by ssy quotation from " vhe great Poet , " that I mean to attack the very strongest of your prejudices at once . And in this , my fire upon you must be hot- When the mind ii -weak the prejudice is strong ; and judging from the ^ sa you have made of a long and uninterrupted pos-BESriDa of power , jonr mind must be "west indeed . To = r creates * prejudice is against the labourer . The ijjKt ' you can in sorae wise fetter to your will ; bnt '
ia the labourer of the tenant and in his lorlorn state von recognise youi own oppissiion and misrule , and gV ^ Jsj les t the victi m should come at a knowledge of jfcase causes which make him a strange ? in his own tousf , * n alkn in his own country , an outcast from his ffwa home , and a wanderer upoa the face of the earth in search of some resting place , or market , where God's ift strength to labour may be converted into man ' s Esass of sustenance .
>\ w , if I , who have only witnessed the injustice , jael -f ery warm when wiiung upon the subject , as 1 jsi ^ e you 1 do , what must be the feelings of those who srs teirs to the srae susceptibilities as uijStlL aid iri : have drunk iletp o ! the cup ? Wha : is your greatest folly ? Lrt me explan it to to :. Ton fear to place the labourer in a comfortable sad independent condition , lest from that state of social corslurt and independence should spring a desire to be politically great . You mistake causes for effects . You suppose that the power at present wielded by th « Roman Catbetic clerey emanates from popular
hostility to tout orda , y . ur religion and yoni possessions . It does no Euch " thing . It is an emanation fan ycrar neglect , jour persecution , and your in ; u =-isee , as well towards yonrscives as towards the people JLinore the causes , and the removal of the effects Trill very fpcciily follow . Bat while you are thus keeping up a struggle between your social power and the priests' political power , you do not see that you yourselves are aidir . g * ad atoning in the very change , to prevent wh . cb 732 h 3 Ts drrotsd all your energies , tamely , a transfer of all poiiticAl power from your hands to the bi ^ ds ol the Roman Catholic clergy .
Point » ut a single popular vice and I will trace it to fc parent aristocratic folly ; indeed , I should reverse fee tenns vice and fully—the vice is yours , while the iteropt of the pesple to counteract it from failure , b oHed folly . EiTe = oa ever tnawn a irotiing man in Ireland , vith certain employment at eightpeaca a day , and paid , to be charged with an act ef dishonesty , violence , or outrage ! 1 have n ? t ; and my experience goes far is that rfcst-ect . 1 have heard scores of magistrates admit the same . DnyT-ii not then , ia the uncultivated sute of your lasu ; , zrA in the unemployed state of the people , discover all the errors of society , and see just its" for self-reproach .
TThen Icomet-o treat of a fanner , Ishallshowjustand -sc £ ; ien : azst for the poor man ' s preference of the pries : to the landlord , in nine cases out of ten . 2 » ay , I will go fsris-r , an § assert , that out of nine cases in every ten , lssdjords lcok with a jealous eye npoa a thriving tenant , eEpeciiHy if his iicproveinciit is convertible into an bcrease of rent . 15 y Lords ana Gentlemen , I beg of you to keep this CEr fast in view .- it is thai 1 have a meaning in every fir I write ; and well knowing that yonr grand objec-Ssu to s subdivision of land arises from a dread of seating a numerous tribe of agrarian suitors for poli-Sal power , I have called the great naturalist to my aid , & Um > hope of conTuaciflf you of the little causa 79 s Jave to itai in the event of such a result and its lealizafion , that jwu property -would suffer damage , t your position in society any inferiority .
Yoar constant cry is , " What ! enfranchise the feveBers , and thus " surrender the power to other hands , - » isa of which would be sore to-lead to our immolition , « sd a consequence of which would be that the sacred Usiue called liberty would degenerate into lioentious-* ais and lead t « a complete eocial reToIation . " It would lad to a revolution , and a complete ona , in the proper aae of the word ; that is , to a perfect one , and io £ ns from which you would derive the . greatest tee £ L
I have aaid that an employed Irish labourer is always fctiiSed . I aver that he is sycophanticaUy so , and l » ts jpon tie contract between tin and his master , br-B-Mcn ; te laita is th = gr = at beEe =: itr , as a favour isr . ad of a rigLt . In a whole-some state of society bi unempleyed us-srilling idler would be entitled » 5 a su £ ciency of every : hing tj make life t , blessing , fe render man ' s op > ress : on inoperative , so far as food , ftsasirt , lo ' . gicg , fn-1 , and liberty relate . But Irkh-Ben , E 7 en wten it fall work , do not cEJ '^ y any of those KsErsr ; : B ; t lit me hbw g-j further , and assure ycu thit so &J iroia the cortenttd agricuiisral ; 3 bonrer envring ? ozi Epparenr superiority , be laugiis at the follies & 3 $ d tv voar easy ac-qutrement of luxury . Be sees 79 a aiiairpt to do for you selves what he does better lot Jqh , asa glories in his superiority . He looks at the « 5 fice , c ' . car complexion , and straight limb of his ial ' -u- ' nl orTsprine , and contrasts them with the pale kca ma bandy legs * f pampered ariitocrats . He «^ s-ts in soeing the huntsman taken fron the cabin , ksciag thi £ ild , ajid - ^ saUng- ;_ the £ erc-i ;» ry eques-^"¦ iia . He contrast the hardihood of his own prifcstt » l "Bid ; the effsminacy of your prirs'tood . When « heirs if his master being sick , he observes , " Wisha , E ; ? : rra , itc too mach of them doctor ' s thinzs he da * s
te taking ; bs : if I tad him for a week alongside a me , 1 " -i sxm aixi hiai . " He is miserable when he ia idle , 423 sever ed happy as -when at work . Iss have thrown him upon necessity for invention ; j $ ' - ^ idleness fo r mischief ; and now you wonder that u cis * stii £ . ed , inventive and lEischievons . You have * HI your political po-srer , aad especially that power ^* the state affords to an ascendant and hostile te = n ^ fer the parpase of crashing him ; and then yon
wader that he ehoaid struggle , uadei the guidance of 2132 who never deser . him , for the means , the only ; v ^ * ' comfeattin ? you- If the Church oppress ' , fca Ton uke part -writh the Church ; if the law Dpfras him , you take part with the law ; if the police ^ Justly accuse , or wrongfully treat him , you reject ' , ^ iilin * * , zni give ear to the hired disturbers , ; * oeccpaUon would cease if your duti& * were , ^ * ° = ily adsiiaisiered . '
* T ne in uniiecessiry expence in om whole sys" ^ d I -rill trace it * origin to some ona of tout .. . * aade betweeneightandninemilliona of peo-* . ' !* , " . scrpIai ropulation , " in a land capable of main-»^ . ""* ~ ------Cs health and comfort more than four ^" r 11231 ' *^ ' md tJifcn ? - ^ ercifnlly transpc-rt the ^^ " - " ^^' -tioij "wiih as 2 ztile coznuzLncziou as you ^ in ^ .. _ CSttiS ' M OVemoeivJ iaxza -, aad ihese you ~~ " ^ - ^ - ^ - ^ rorti-jn of s . ckrv /' reverrrfrCUEg
Untitled Article
that thfi commendation ia & stigma upon yourselves , for having banished honest industry from its native shore . I shall conclude my comment upon the cheerfulness with which an agricultural labourer bends to his lot when fairly cast , by once mow respeating the last Bentence from the passage of the great poet , " And his chief pride is in the modest cemforts of hifl Condition . " Xow , ray Lords an < i Gentlemen , in order to raise that honest pride by placing him in a proper and
comfortable condition , I shall proceed to shew you the loss , the . mkhty loss , to society , by your foolish and injudicious management of your estates . With a view to the perfect illustration of nay subject , 1 propose Vo take a Email estate of 1 , 000 awes , let to ten tenants , in farms of 100 acres each , to Bhew the little benefit which society has , and also the bad security which landlords have , from snch an unprofitable distribution of land ; and then to shew the great benefit which society at large , and landlords in general , would derive from a Tntre equitable division of land , corresponding with the capital , industry , and requirements , of the people aad the interest * of society at large , from the very feghest to the very lowest My Lords and Gentlemen , you will have perceived that my object iB to bring your estates from a heavy wholesale market into a brisk retail market . Do not mistake me , and mppese that I hold you to be ignorant of the vast benefit which the change wculd confer generally upon jour order . I inrw that yon are perfectly aware of it ; but your apprehension is , that land cannot be advantageously divided for agricultural purposes , without bringing abou : a corresponding subdivision of pol ' . tical power ; and you prefer the loss of abi / ut ten millions annually in rent , to the loss of more than a hundred mil ' . iuna in political patronage to your families relatives and dependants , made paupers by your cruel conditions annexed to leases and exclusive dealing in bed . To those then , most especially , who augment the great political patron ' s power , by adherence to the vicious system , do 1 address mj obser-
Untitled Article
vations . Again , I say , that I can very -well "understand the reason why my Lord gives up £ 5 000 a-year in rent for a bishoptick , a judgestip , an admiral s or a general ' s commission , the lieutenancy of his county and appointment of magistrates , with some fat livings and minor pickings for his strongest supporters ; but I cannot for the life of me reconcile with conrnun sense the blind follovring of the retired country gentleman , not requiring any of thos-e pickings ; and , therefore , to him I appeal .
A thousand acres of land in Ireland , then , I suppose to be held in the most beneficial way ; that is , direct , from tie proprietor , and -upon lease . I should bs justified in arguing upon the system from a thousand acres held by a middleman , whereof eight hundred iras sublet , and two hundred held in his own hands , the labour of which is gratuitously performed by the tenants of the eight hundred acres . This course , however , I shall not take , as it is my intention to give yon
the best of the system , and to use the most unprofitable results of my system foT my argument . I lay aside science , and come to plain di-jjing at once ; and , therefore , take one thousand acres , divided into ten farms of one hundred acres each . >' uw then , let us eee how this is cultivated ; what it produces ; how many it supports ; and what surplus , after cultivation and support , it leaves for expenditure in the manufacturing and trade market
In Monster ths September rent is paid with the harvest ; and the March rent is jaid by the sals of butt « r , pigs , and some potatoes . la Leinster the September rerft is paid by a fat' c » w , atsal calf , sad a small portion of the harvest ; and the March rent is , for tie most part , made up by the sale of Wheat , and Oatmeal , each farmer either turning what is called S m&al " manger , ' * theg pronounced harsh ii the g in bmg , » or printer of a portion of his own corn into meal , or , haying at the doer a ready sale for oits t « those who are more titensive in that traffic . Here , " stir-about , " is the general food ; in Munster , potatoes . In Connaught , large tracts of feeding ground are held by breeders of sheep and cattle , and the system of Serfdom still exists there to an awful extent .
There , are comparatively few cultivators in Connaught upon a small scale , that ia , tenants ; and the poorest class of harvest men to be seen in England , and in parts of Lsinster and Ulster , are the miserable cottiers who hold a sty for themselves and the pig . Wh 3 t is most diijrcceful to Irishmen , is the fact , that this class of their countrymen are scooted and hooted ia Leiastet « od Ulster , while they axe invariably kindly' treated bf th » English people . They lie called " spalpeens" ( pepnr motrerj ); and aw maltreated for competing "With the resident workmen in harvest-tune . They pay the rent of some potatoeground and of the sty , with the pig , and what they can
save from harvest ¦ w » rk leaving the potatoes to the family during their absence ; and when scarcity occurs , the mother nails up the door , and with her little bag , accompanied with the ycunf blood of Ireland , ( perhaps " seven or eight younglings , ) takes to the road , barked at by the rieh man ' s dog , and fostered by the charitable of har own class . In Ulster , the small farmers ire much better off . Hj Lord * and ( JenSemen , I have thought it neceesvjXa * Ui * Krsaadi of customs , for the purpose of erhibitang Ireland to your eve » t t glance . Let as now dispose of a ftrmor holding one hundred acres of ground . 1 -frill select the c ? unty of Cork ; limerick
being mere of a grazing county , and Tipperary , Clare , and Waterfordbeing feeding , and corn-growing counties Kerry , very much resembles Cork ; and some parts of it send furth their . emigrants in harvest and potato-digging time , in the -same manner 23 Connaught . Ten farmers then , holding one thousand acres of laud in the county of Cork , and living upon those farms for twentyfive years , ia time "when ths family becomes marriage abi =,,. will not , unitedly , ha ^ e spent £ 29 per annum in the manufacturing mirke- They live very little , jf anything , better tkan their labourers , -with vrnom they breakfast and dine six days in the week ; breakfast being potatoes , and thick milk , " blue , '' from sijty to eighty-four hotu * old , sometimes boiled into cards aad whey , an * sometimes cold ; and they have the same for dinner , from the 1 st of January to the 31 st of December .
If the farmer can hold possession , and keep the stock together , and if , in the twenty-five years , be li&s Bcrxjjad together £ -25 # for his children's portions , h » considers himseif right well off . We will suppose him to have three sons and two daughters . To the daughters he gives £ l 9 o each ; the second son he marries to another farmer's daughter , with whom he gets his one hundred pounds ; the eldest son remains for some time unmarried , and when his parents meet with a suitable match for him , in their old age , they , with the gossoon ithe youngest boui give up the farm to the heir , \ with his Honour ' s consent , and sornethinj rnorc , r and live themselves upon a few acres of which the son pays the rest ; aad the fifty pounds spared after the daughter ' s portion remains for which ever shall be -survivor , to lire -with the youngest , who seldom 01 never marries during the life of the old couple .
My Lords and Gentlemen , the law « f nature , which thus implants the duty in the child of taking care » f his aged parents , is in my mind far preferable to the law of primogeniture settlement and entail , which makes the son dread his mother brothers and sisters , and quarter-day . JL letter with a black seal and mourning edge from the family mansion , is a God- * end to the piniij heir , made idle from expectancy ; while death is an unwelcome messenger to the poor man's hou » e , from-which , thank God . ' system-m * de ruffianism kas not as yet banished all aatural feeling .
We now come to co * sider how these one hundred acres are cultivated . They are , for the most part , disposed of as follows ; potatoes , ten acres ; wheat , ten acres ; oats , ten acres ; remainder in a transient state between weeds , and Useil Dext turn for poL&tots . Tpan seventy acres twenty wretched cows and four horses , or three horses and a cult , are jrur-portvd : it is
Untitled Article
cultivated in the very rudest manner ; I mean roughesttor spade culture is literally the rudest , but yet the most excellent , mode of cultivation . When I come to write a plain system for the poor man ' s industry , and show exactly wherein his inheritance lies , you w'll be astounded at the ignorance of your system , and your consequent loss . The potatoes are good ; no better ; the best in the world , because the flavour is not destroyed by sharp manures . The wheat for the most part is good as to produce , but miserable as to sample ; the produce depending « n the land , the sample
upon the tenant , or rather upon the landlord , whose duty , whose especial duty , it is to see thai above all Other tMngi , sound , clean , and suitable seed be sown ; by suitable , I mean that upland seed from a distance be Bown in swampy and stiff ground , and vies versa ; by clean , I mean that a peck of weed seed should not be sown with a bag of wheat seed , thereby exhausting the land and producing an expenditure of much unproductive labour in weeding ; not that labour is unproductively expended when crops require weeding , but it might be altogether saved , and more bfcoeS . cia . lW applied .
The cows produce scarcely a hundred weight of butter a head ; thty are aade to calve unseasonably for want of sufficient shelter ; and "thus much ia lost by renewing the ttock . A farmer tries to send Mb cow for service , so as to calve when the season will suit him ; tut the cow is obstinate and will only be in calf when the thinks preper . By this arrangement seventy acres , whicb would support thirty-five cows well , merely keeps twenty miserable things alive ; the land , while
in grass , being a mere ca ^ ut morluum , and may be considered as sacrified to the thirty acres of badly cultivated crops ; in a state of probation , waiting for its turn to be ploughed , having " seven years' skin upon it , " which is necessary for producing good potatoes and wheat ; the necessity being created by a want of the best manure that ever was , or ever will , or ever can be applied to land , man ' s arms and feot , with a spade at the end of it .
Our nest consideration is the number of persons which the 100 acres supports . We will estimate the farmer ' s family at five , and he will have five labourers ; but you know , as in Scotland , the practise is to get single men , or one man and his two sons , and a man and one son ; however I will give you oil the advantage of five families , consisting of a man , his wife , and five children each ; thus domiciliatiBg six families , of seven to a family , or forty-two persons , upon the 100 acreB , living in rags , as I have described , like pigs ( but not like fat onest from year's end to year ' s end , resting at night upon a Bop of straw upon an earthen floor , without one single particle of furniture , or any one thing conducing to man ' s comfort—not one . Ib toat right treatment , my Lenls and Gentlemen , for those who coin the barren surface of your soil into down beds ,
costly mansions , a ws-H-stocked larder , and a fine wardrobe ? Ah ' beware how you longer maintain political power at the expence of social disorganisation and a reversion of all nature ' s laws ! . ' ¦ ' Let us now see whit surplus afteT Buch Bupport the farm leaves for traffic and s > upp ] y in the consuming and manufacturing markets . We take a year ' s produce ;—i . 8 . d . 50 bags of wheat at £ 1 us . per bag 01 ' 16 6 10 cvrts . of butter , seconds and thirds , at £ 3 5 s . per cwt . 52 i 0 20 barrels of oats , spared from horses , at lus . per barrel 10 0 0 10 fat pigs at £ ^ cwt . per pig , at £ 1 per cwt 25 0 Spared BOtatoes 21 0 u
£ 170 10 0 £ U Rent , say 20 s . per acre . ' tbo -v&i Tithe and county rate 10 0 0 Paid to five labourers , besides diet 20 0 0 Renewal of cattle for dairy H 0 8 Wear and tear , smith's work , and additional men at harvest 20 I 0 Laid by for children 10 0 e Spent in manufacturing market 0 10
£ 170 10 Now , what interest has the fanner for his capita ! employed as follows ?— £ s . d . Price of 20 cows at £ 7 a-head 140 0 0 Four horses at £ 10 each 40 0 I Cartg , tackling , ploughs , harrows , &c 20 0 0
£ 2 « 0 0 0 What interest has he for that which pequires £ 10 a-year to keep it np , by the renewal of dairy stock to its original value ! He has just the £ 10 a-year , "which he lays by , if all goes well . And what is his remuneration ? Jart the amount of comfort that I have shown him to be partaker " of ; and thai , for twenty » fiv » yews he and his family undertake great risk and respond bility , and at the end of that time are more than happj if remunerated with his Honour's bond for £ 250 .
Come , can you deny my position ; and will yon s * y I do not considerably exaggerate my statement in favopr of the ] farmer ? If so , take stock of that class ; an& Ji pledge , myself that for one farmer holding 160 na % who has saved £ 250 after twenty-five yean toil , ttet ^ will find four at least in arrears , with tjgtr catty marked for rent , and without a fractiori ^ m' the worUjI In fact ft fanner with £ 250 is a " rara avis "—you cafe Mm a simfc man ? ' . Jffk rl My Lords and Gentlemen , this is tbe-w « dc for toyiaj the lystem-made-rogueB and murderers is Yorksbiaj and as the paper for which I write is expetctd t
chronicle their trials , I must bow take my leave , with a caution to beware how you allow your brains to be haunted with the new science called " political economy . " It is , believe me , but a phantasm which haunts the unpractised fool in his airy dreams of artificial beatitude . It is a delusion all ; a proposed corrective for social disarrangement ; a substitute for social economy ; which means the most pleasant , the most easy , and the most beneficial application of man's labour and ingenuity to the conversion of raw material , and above all of the land , into produce for man ' s sustenance , support comfort and enjoyment .
My Lords and Gentlemen , believe me , that you must take the whole system into calculation , before you can arrive at a just conclusion as to the proUf-Me remit to-ke produced by pasting events . Ycrtt must look at all the circumstances , and from the whole , and not from any flattering or fancied portion of them , you must draw your conclusions . Let me assist you . Take Class Legislation and gunpowder for your dividend , and Political Economy for your divisor , and the result in your quotient will be a large surplus of fictitious money ; a large surplus of
manufactured goods ; a large " surplus population , " rendered useless by machinery ; a large surplus of nen-consnming , unregulated , producing power ; a large army ; a large navy ; a large church-establishment ; a large law establishment ; a large police establishment ; a large regal establishment ; a large poor law establishment ; a large oligarchial pauper establishment ; & small centralised , gorged slave-owners establishment ; social ruin ; an empty exchequer ; little trade ; discontent ; crime ; insecurity of property ;
gaols full of " political offenders ; " starvation ; and revolution . As a superabundance of fictitious money presses hard upon and reduces the value of real capital , so does fictitious labour press hard upon aad reduce the value of real labour . And as the bankrupt fails in the midst 0 ! surplus wealth , so does the perative starve in the midst of abnndanee , neither having the means of acquiring the drug . Thus you see merchants failing in the midst of afilaeo . ee , and the people starvinj in the midst of plenty .
In my next I shill shew that Vhe 1 , 009 acres subdi vided into the too-large allotments of Us acre * each , would maintain in affluence two for one , compared with your presaafc system ; would increase your rents ; and in twenty-five years , those 1 , 080 acres aloae would cause an expenditure of more than ) £ 5 O , 0 O 0 in the manufacturing market , after having furnished to society a much larger quantity above consumption , than , the &auie 1 , 000 acres now furnish , altogether-
Untitled Article
I would make man to a certain extent his own producer , manufacturer , and consumer ; thus relieving the wholesale market of its slaves , and at the same time creating a vastly increased demand in the home market for those articles which the husbandman could not manufacture , and other articles which from the advantages of machinery , he could purchase cheaper than he could make . You must return from an artificial to a more natural state of society . You must givo to the labourer the power of regulating the supply of his own produce according to demand ; and , above all , if his elevation la society be in truth your object , you must let him see the sterling labour-stamp upon his handy-work , instead of finding it effaced by the counterfeit enterprise tod speculation stamp of " oca merchants , " " oua traders , " and " our slave owners . "
My maxim to-day is the same as that which I laid down for you ia 1831— " A fair day ' s wage for a fair day * work . " Give thai , and use your political power for the conversion of machinery into maa ' s holiday instead of being man ' s curse ; and then , in the eloqueat and statesman-like words of Mr . Butterworth , o n ^ . - of Ttay illegally incarcerated brethren , you may " go to bed by steam , rise by steam ; and dress yourselves by steam , provided steam does not take the bed from the poor man , and leave him without clothes to dress with . "
My Lords , 8 nd Gentlemen , many a half-witted fool has gained even a posthumous fame by one sentiment not containing a twentieth part of the philosophy of the above . Search all your writers upon " free trade ' " political ecenomy" and " commerce , " and I defy you to equal it from the catalogue of their united folly , or from the heap to pick one such grain from the chaff . My Lords and Gentlemen , " political economy" has no " finality , " and , believe me , that the political economists will never rest satisfied till they make you tenants ia your own houses , stewards to your own
estates ; and beggars from the Pole , the Turk , the Russian , the Prussian and the Americas , upon your own land . They wish to place you upon the shop-board , making breeches and coats which the foreigner may or may not purchase , according to convenience ; while they would make you dependants upon the foreigner for that which you must have three times a day , or starve , or do that which 1 urn quite sure you never could briny yt > nrsi >! vrs to , as you Juice transported thousands upon thousands for the sume—SCEA-I ..
Now , do not think the picture over painted . Do not reject the adrice because it comes from a " Destuvc-TivE . " Do not despise it because it comes through the only paper in England which dares to support the labourer against his every enemy , from ths monarch ou the throne who gives assent to laws for his ruin , down to the policeman who executes those laws—no not . And ever bear the alternative in mind , REFOKM or TRANSFER . That you may come to a righteous , a just , and a sound conclusion , is the devout prayer of * Your obedient , And very humble servant , FEAlUHti O'CO . NIiOU . York CaBtle , Condemned Cell ' , 14 th of fifteenth month of solitary confinement .
Untitled Article
YORK . —On Wednesday evening last , Mr . G . J . Harney , the talented advocate of the People ' s Charter , delivered a lecture on the rights of labour , and the j UrJHCiples ol the Charter , in the large room of the B ^ Sation , sftnate in € « £$ gale . Mr . Detnalne in the hair . The room was crowded to excess , and hundreds bod to go' away disappointed , being uuublo lo gain admittance . Mt . H . spoke lot Iipwaid 9 0 ! two hours , fully exposing both factions , and concluded by calling upon the men of York to unite for the attainment of their political rights . The worthy lecturer was loudly cheered during his address . The following resolution
was proposed by Mr . Cordeux , and seconded by Mr . Gill , and carried unanimously .- — " That it is the opinion of this meeting , that great changes are necessary in the system of Government in this country , in order to improve the condition of the working classes , and w « are of opinion that no confidence can be placed on the factions which at present misrule our country , and we pledge ourselves never to rest satisfied until we are fully and fairly represented on the principles of the People ' s Charter . " Three tremendous cheers were then given for the " Caged Lion ; " three for Frost , Williams , and Jones , and three for the Charter , after which the meeting separated .
r ASHTON UNDER-LYNE . —The cause of Chartism is progressing very rapidly in this town . The members £ t the Association held their usual weekly meeting on Sunday last , to hear Mr . Storor , who had been delegated io the County Council Meeting ; but it being late beto ' re'he arrived , the election news and O'Connor ' s letters ( were read from the Star , "with deep interest , and all present were Btruck with astonishment on hearing of the base treachery of Dover aud Edwards . Andrew (?« e"wton was elected to the Council , in room of John JBlater . About nine o ' clock , Mr . . Storor entered the room , and gave a very satisfactory account of his mission ; after which , the meeting broke up .
BRADFORD . —The Chartists of this place having learnt that threats are held out by a few Whig hirelings against their leaders , called a public meeting on Wednesday evening last , at which the following resolution was * adopted : —That this meeting regrets the misconduct of certain misguided individuals during and subsequent to the election j but the Chartists of Uradford , determined to maintain that respect for tkeir character accorded to them in the Commons' Huusu of Parliarrent by Fox Maule , that they are both intelligent and forbearing under circumstances of the moBt extraordinary excitement , do recommend every effort to be used for the restoration of that general good will which hitberto bas existed in the borough . "
DUBLIN . —The Universal Suffrage Association of this place held thtir weekly meeting on Sunday last , in their great room , No . 1-1 , North Anne-street , Mr . Thos . Leo in the chair , who , in a neat and forcible speech , argued the necessity , utility , and right of the producers of wealth to a voice in the making of the laws by -which they are to be governed ; that nothing short of the spread of political knowledge , aud a union of sentiment and action between the people of Great Britain and Ireland , could ever emancipate them , for As the one rises or falls , so must the other . The meeting was also addressed by Messrs . Wood , Brophy , and Patrick O'Higgins , in support of the principles ot
Universal Suffrage , Vole by Ballot , Annual Parliaments , Equal Representation , No Property Qualification , Payment of Members , and Repeal of the Legislative Union , which are the objects of this association . The meeting was a crowded one , and never was there more anxiety evinced , by any meeting , for their principles , than at this , on account of the defeat of O'Connell and Hutton . Several went away exclaiming , " Sure that ' s the very thing we want ; what fools we have been . If those are the principles of the Chartists we are all for them . " Several new members were enrolled , and notices of others , who may be enrolled on Sunday next , were given . This association meets every Sunday evening , at six o ' clock .
Untitled Article
Yesterday , Mr . Christopher Robinson Bell , of Bedford PJace , Leeds , and Mr . Thomas Brown , of Manchester , were charged , before Messrs . Goodman aud Cadman , at the Court House , with having forged the endorsement of Messrs . York and Sheepshanks , ef thiB town , to a bill of exchange for £ 194 153 ., with intent to defraud Messrs . Samuel Appieyard and Co ., manufacturers of lastings , &c , of 12 , Marketstreet , Manchester . Mr . Shackletoa ' , solicitor , appeared for the prosecution ; Mr . Naylor and Mr . Bond attended f&r the prisoners .
Mr . James , police-officer , stated that he was sent . for to the Golden Lion Inn on the previous evening , where the prisoners were given into his custody , on , the charge of having forged a bill , of which the following is a copy : — " £ 194 15 a . Od . " Newcastle , 1 st Jaly , 1841 . " Two months after date pay to oar otder one hundred and ninety-four pounds fifteea shilling's . W . & J . Good . " Accepted ^—James Harrison . " The indorsers purported to be T ffi " . & J . Good , Thos . Harrison , York and Show ^ ahanks , Wm . Greenwood , Bray , Brown & Co . Mr . Samuel Appieyard said \ is received tbe bill from the prisoner Brown , Be ' . l beins preset , at .-. .
Untitled Article
time ; the endorsement of Bray , Brown , & Co . was there written by Brown . The bill was paid L » part payment for goods sold to the prisoners joint ) y , to the amount of £ 259 12 s . Od . They said they r . < presented the firm of Bray , Brown , & Co ., and w . > uld send the balance of the invoice in cash . The bill was endorsed down to the name of Wm . Greenwo > id , when it was presented , and Brown wrote on it t . he names of Bray , Brown , & Co . Two papers found in the pocket of the prisone r Bell were then put in ; one was an exaot copy ( in \ pencil ) of the bill , without the acceptance , aud the other was a similar bill , unfinished , written on a S ' amp , but for one hundred pounds .
Mr . Sheepshanks deposed , that the endorsement of the bill purporting to be that of York and Sheepshanks , was not his ; he had no partner ; nor had he ever authorised any person to use his name . He had no transactions with any such bills . The prisoner Bell had been formerly in his employ , and though he could not swear positively , he suspected the writing to be his . He had had no transactions in business at any time with any of the endorsers on the bill . Mr . William Kirk , auctioneer , Leeds , knew the handwriting of tho prisoner Bell , and had no hesitation in swearing that the signature of " York and Sheepshanks" was his ; Thomas Harrison's signature he believed , was written by the same hand , though more disguised . He thought the bill had been drawn by Bell .
In cross-examination by Mr . Naylor he said he first saw the bill that morning ; he had been fetched to the Court House , and was told on the way that Bell was in custody on the charge of forgery . It was two months since he had seen Bell write , but he knew his writing perfectly we }} . Mr . Shackleton was present when the bill was shown to nim . This being the whole of the evidence at present obtained , Mr . Goodman said , the Magistrates taking into consideration the convenience of the prisoners , they should remand them , to go before the Magistrates at Manchester , in order that , if they decided upon sending the cause for trial , it might come on at Liverpool , this present Assize ? , instead of being deferred till March next , at York .
Mr . Nayloii then obtained from Mr . Appieyard , in reply to questions , that he and Mr . Shackleton had had an interview with the prisoners , that morning , in the gaol , when he said , that if they could raise the mouey the prosecution should be abandoned . Mr . Bond , on the part of Brown , was instructed to eay that he had an excellent defence tojthe charge ; but , as the magistrates had decided , ( and in the propriety of that decision he concurred , ) on sending the case into Lancashire , he advised that tho defence 6 hould not be then opened at all . Mr . Naylor was of tho same opinion . The prisoners were , therefore , removed , in order to be sent to Manchester . Wo understand there are other charges of a similar nature likely to be brought against them , this not being the only bill to which the endorsement of Mr . Sheepshanks has been forged .
Untitled Article
Death bt Drowning . —On Thursday evening last , an inquest was held at the Court House , Leeds , before Mr . Hopps , deputy coroner , on the body of John Hargreavos , a little boy six years of age , residing with his mother in Swin ^ gate . He was at play on Twesday evening , when , by some means , he fell into the King ' s Mills doit , and wan drowned . The body was not recovered for nearly two hours . There being no evidence to phew how he came into the water , tho Jury returned a verdict of " J- ' ound drowned . " Game Licences . —At a Special Petty Sessions , yesterday , the following persons had licences granted to them to deal in gamo for the ensuing year .---Ann Firth , North-street ; Uoorgo Palfreyman , Briggate ; Ann Sload , Uriggate ; Georgo Ward , Upper Albionstreet ; and John Kitson . Woodhouse-lane .
Fatal Accident . —On Thursday evening , an inquest was held at the Court House , before Mr . E . C . Hopps , deputy coroner , on the body of Henry Watson , a cloth dresser , thirty-six years of age , who , on the 24 th of June , whilst engaged in his employment , and in the act of putting an end of cloth on rollers , worked by machinery , was by some means thrown between two cog wheels . Hh left thigh wm much lacerated , though not it WS 8 then thought to any thing like a serious extent ; ho was , however , advfced to go to the Infirmary , and after being some days an out-patieut , it was thought expedient that he should remain there , not that there was immediate danger , but because of tho sloughing of the skin stillness was deemed requisite . Here ho did well for some time , and the wound became healed ; but fever from the effect of the woupd supervened , and he died on Thursday morning . Verdict— " Accidental death . "
Ooa / . Sessions . —On Thursday last , a Court of Gaol Session was held in the Magistrates room , York Cafitlo , when tho following resolutions were passed : — ' * That the plans and estimates proposrd by the architect , and approved by the Judges of the Northern Circuit for increasing the accommodation in its courts of justice for counsel , solicitors , and suitors , for facilitating the dispatch of busine .-s , and also for affording additional accommodation to the publi . c are approved by this court , and to be forthwith carried into effect under the direction of tho visiting magistrates , the estimated expence to amount to j £ 1 , 1 * 10 . " " That the following gentlemen bt > appointed visitovs of the goal , viz : —B . Hague , K * q ., the Rev . T . Dayrell , J . Tweedy , Esq , B . Agar , K « q ., and Sir J . L . " Kaye , Bart . " " That the clerk of the gaol sessions do draw drafts payable to John Swann , Esq ., treasurer of the three Ridings , for the proportionate part of the sum of £ " 2 , o 00 to be advanced to him on account of York Castle , for payment of salaries and miscellaneous expences . " The Grand Jury have left in tho hands of the Governor of York Castle £ -15 14 ? . Gd . for obtaining the discharge of poor debtors .
Untitled Article
CROWN COURT . —Thursday , July 1 , > . ( Before Mr . Justice Wightman . ) Edward Marsden , 22 , was charged with having , on the 7 th of March last , at Halifax , robbed Thos . Farrrr . Mr . Wasney appeared for the prosecution , Sir . G . Lew in was for the defence . The prosecutor resides at Cromwell Bottom , near Southowram , and is a stone delvcr . He was returning from Halifax at near twelve o ' clock on the night in question , and had arrived near Southowram church , when the prisoner jumped over the hedge , knocked the prosecutor down , and kicked him . He got up again , and
the prisoner then robbed him of six shillings and a silver watch . The prisoner knocked him down again and beat him on the back of the head , so as to cause a serious wound , and he was otherwise injured . Sir Gregory Lewin addressed the « I > ury for the prisoner . He observed that a gentleman named Scholefield , of Rastrick , near Halifax , had come forward with money to provide for the defence of the prisoner , from a firm conviction of his innocence . Several witnesses were called to prove an alibi , and Mr . Scholefield gave the prisoner a good character . Not Guilty .
There -was another charge against the prisoner for stealing a silver watch from Thos . Farrer , on the night in question , but no evidence was offered .
STABHINO . I Thomas Slone , 17 , was charged with having , on I the 3 rd of April last , at Leeds , stabbed John j Kitching , with intent to do him grievous bodily 1 harm . i Mr . Roebuck appeared for the prosecution , and j Mr . Wilkins for the defence . The prosecutor resides at Holbeck , near Leeds , and on the 3 rd of April was at the Saddle Hotel , Briggate , where he drank two glasses of ale . He and two persons , named Fowler and Newton , were going home through Meadow Lane , wken they met the prisoner , in company with a young woman , and they were qaarrelling . The prosecutor said 10 Stone , " Hold thy noise , " at the same time taking the prisoner ' s cap off his head , and thrawing h in his face . The prisoner immediately strsck Kitching on the right thigh , when the prisoner was taken away
by a person named Leach , but he returned and struck Kitching on tb » right breast . Prosecutor went to Hill ' s Yard , where he became sick and was carried home in a state of insensibility . He went to Mr . Greaves , druggist , between twelve and one o ' clock in the morning-, aad he dressed the wound » a the right breast wfcich was a dangerous wound . The prosecutor was eonfined to his house for about a week , during whieh time he was attended by Mr . Dobson , surgeon . The wound on the thigh was only slight . When th » blows were given the prisoner was not seen with any instrument in his hand , but no other person struck the prosecutor . Mr . Child took tb . 8 prisoner into custody , and he stated to him that he had struck Kitchiu ^ but not with a sharp iustrumeat , and that the prosecutor and the other men had annoyed and insulted every ; person they had met on the road .
Mr . Wilkins ably addressed the Jury for the prisoner , when they returned a verdict | of Guilty of common assault .
Untitled Article
je f ^ l 4 ? jZ ^ X ^ T ^^^^ v ^^^ ; o &t ** £ * . ^^ L ^ &C ^ /^ s ^ i ^ s- t / y # z *~ t ^^ t /^^^ ASSAULTING THB POLICE . John Fothergill , 23 , was charged with having - wounded James Child , policeman , of Leeds , with intent to do him some grievous bodily harm . Mr . WaKiss . appealed for the pTosecution . and Sir G . Lewin for the prisoner . The facts of the case , aa stated in the opening , were as follows : —It appears that on the 30 ih of September last , the prosecutor went to the house of David Butters , tho keeper of a beer house at the top of Marsh Lane , in order to apprehend a man named Nicholson , for burglary . That evening the prisoner , attended by three other men , among whom was Nicholson ,
went into the beershop in question , and shortly afterwards Nicholson put a poker into the fire . A person took it out , when Nicholson put it in again , and Mr . Child and Stubbs , another policeman , shortly afterwards went into the house . In attempting to take Nicholson into custody , he became very violent , and resisted Child , and refused to go with him , and when the police were taking Nicholson away , the prisoner said , " D—n it , Iad 3 , go at them . " A very violent assault was hen made on the police , and Child ' s arm waa broken . He took hold ef the poker , with which one of the men who was tried at the March Assizea , was beating him iu order to wrest it from him , when one of the party , with a knife , nearly severed ^ hild s thumb from his hand , that he might relax his hold of the poker . Although the prisoner had used the expression above-mentioned , yet he was not so violent as the rest .
At the suggestion of Sir G . Lewin , and before my evidence was called , the prisoner was allowed ( d plead guilty to a common assault . The prisoner w -as further charged with wounding John Stubbs at tlie same time , but no evidence was offered .
COW STEALING . _ S ' amuel Cotton , was charged with having on the / tn inst ., at Huddersfield , stolen a cow , the property of C oarlotte Shaw . , Sir' G . Lewin and Mr . Washey were for the prosecution ; the prisoner was undefended . The prosecutnr resides at Lees Mill , Golcar , near Hadderafaeld . On the 6 th inst ., the cow was seen in her fieldbut on the following morning it was missed . The cow wa « cried at Holmfirth and other places , incon-8 equ » nc « of which it was fonnd that , on the 7 th , Mr John Bgaver , of Tfiurlstone , had bought the cow of the prisoner for £ 7 4 s ,, and immediately he sold her to Jamess Senior for seven guineas . By this means the pj-oseontrix recovered her cotr and Che prisoner was taken into custody . —Guilty .
BIQAUY . William Haggas ( 31 ) was charged with bigamy , at Leeds . Mr . Hall was for the prosecution ; the prisoner was undefended . The prisoner is a tailor , and on the 24 th of September , 1833 , he was married at Leeds to Hannah Meek , and on the 27 th of February , 1837 , he was married at Rothwell to a persoa named Jane Richardson . He stated to his second wife , and to other persons , that his first wife was dead , but at the latter end of last year both the wives became chargeable to the parish of Holbeck , and that was the way in which the effence was discovered . —Guilty .
FOnGEBY . James Wheldon waa charged with forgery at HuD , on the « th of July . Tho first count in the indictment , charged the prisoner with forging a certuia undertaking for the payment of ill 12 ,. with intent to defraud Wm . Piiikney ; the second count charged him with tittering the same ; and the third and other counts charged him with forcing the undertaking with intent to defraud James Wilson and others . Mr . AntunoLi ) and Mr . Bain wero for the prosecution . The prisoner was undefended . The meetings of the New Moulders Friendl y Society aro held at Mr . 1 'inkney ' s , and Mr . Wilson is the secretary to the society . The prisoner forged Mr . Wilson ^ name to an order for the payment of £ ) 12 s . which it was usual to revive , and which he did receive from Mr . Pinkney . —Guilty .
II in . Hartley , & » , was charged with having , on the ; Wth of July , KUO , at Leeds , feloniously uttered a promissory note , for tho payment of i . " 2 . j , purporting to be drawn and indorsed by Smith Brothers and Co ., dated " Liverpool , lAth July , ] HH > , " with intent to defraud Francis Buckle . Air . Dr . tssaud Mr . Atheoton wpre for the prosecution . Mr . WiMw .-vs ' aiid Mr . 1 ' ashlev appeared for the defence . Mr . Bliss stated tho case . The prosecutor was a merchant at Ltcdfi , and the prisoner resided at Ecclcshill . The prosecutor had known him for several yearn , and had had business transactions with him . After tho 15 th of July , the prisoner bought of Mr . Buckla £ 20 worth of wool .
and tendered in payment a bill for £ 2 , > . Mr . Buckle asked the prisoner if he knew the drawers , and he said he did ; they were woollen merchants , residing in South John Street , Liverpool , and that he had got the bill from them in payment for some goodr The prisoner , however , refused to indorse the bill . because he naid he Was in diffieu'ties , and was making arrangements with his creditors , and he did not tike his name to be on the bill . Mr . Buckle took the bill , but ho did not pay the prisoner , the £ ¦') until he had soui what became of the bill Mr . Buckla afterwards paid the bill as a collateral security to a person named Booth . Ho , Booth , and a person named Waterhouae , met together at an inn , and Mr . Booth refused to receive tho bill until
it had been indorsed by Buckle and Watorhouse , Soon after Mr . Buckle went to Liverpool , and whilst there ho madn inquiries for the firm , but was unable to Und 0110 of that name . A policeman made a similar search with the liko effect . Mr . Buckle afterwards went to Hamburgh , to see his father who wa ^ ill , and hu remained thereabout five weeks , and returned oh the 20 th Nov . In the meantime , the bill became due and was dishonoured , and after Mr . Buckle's return , Booth and Waterhouse applied for payment of the biU . Mr . Buckle having heard that the prisoner was in Rothwell Gaol for deb' , went there , and took v / kh him his brother . Some come IK ion took place , and the prisoner made the ranio statement as he did when he paid the bill to
Mr . Buckle , frequent applications were made by Mr . Booth to Mr . Buckle for payment of the bill , but in vain ; and in January the latter became bankrupt . 'On the 17 th of February , the sale of Mr . Buckle ' s effects took place , when Mr . Booth again applied for payment , but with no better success than , before , and he then charged Mr . Buckle with uttering aforged bill , andthreatened to get a warrant for him but did not do so till the 1 st of March . On the 2 nd of that month , the time when the protection of the law with respect to his bankruptcy was removed , he went to Liverpool , where heremained tillthe 20 tn of April ( on which day his cortificato was allowed him ) during which time he made further inquiries after the firm and ascertained thattherewas no such
firm as that mentioned , He gave notice to Booth , Waterhouse , and the prisoner , that he would return on tho 21 st of April and meet them before the magistrates on the charge that had been made against him . He did so , and he was committed for trial for the offence , but was afterwards admitted to bail . Mr . Buckley afterwards brought a charge a ? ainst , Hartley for uttering the bill , and on tho 23 d he was examined and committed for trial . Neither Booth nor Waterhouse were called to give evidenceas to tho circumstances above mentioned , and the foreman of the jury stated that he knew a firm of Smith , Brothers , and Steele , at Liverpool , and had 1 done business with them .
Mr . Wilki . vs made an excellent speech for the prisoner , and then called witnesses to give him a character . The jury retired about twenty-five minutes , when they acquitted the prisoner . There ia , however , another charge of forgery against him .
UOBHERY . James Huii / h was charged , with having , on the 7 th of June , at Emley , robbed Wm . Archer . Sir Q . Lewin and Mr . Hall appeared for the prosecution . On the night in question , a man , named Benjamin Redg"wiek , "who resided oext door to the prosecutor , went to his house , and asked him if he would assist him to cut some grass . He agreed to do so : and when they were returning from the field , two men , having
cloth over their faces , attacked the prosecutor , and Hedgwick ran away . The prosecutor waa severely beaten , and robbed of four £ 5 notes , two halS-sove reigns , and a quantity of silver , and then left him . During the struggle that took place , the cloths fell from , the men ' s faces , and the prosecutor identified tbe prisoner . It seems that James Walshaw went by appointment to Redgwick ' s field , in order to rob the prosecutor . This f ; ict was stated by Walshaw , who hai turned Queen ' s evidence , and Redgwick had not been apprehended . Guilty . To-day tho Grand Jury were discharged , tbe Judge thanking them for their attendance . Tbe Court adjourned about five o'clock .
Untitled Article
NISI PRIUS COURT .-Thi ; ksj > at . ( Before Lord Chief Justice Denman . ) The only case of general interest was that of HUGHltL V . JACKSON . BREACH OF PROMISE OF MARRIAGE . It appeared that the parties had become friendly about twelve years ago . The defendant had visited the plaintiff in the capacity of a suitor , with the consent of her friends for six years , when she became pregnant . Refusing to marry her , be was forbidden all further intercourse with her . In consequence of this , the parties had no intercourse with eacn other for about four years . At the end of that time , : the defendant contrived to renew the connexion , and again paid his addresses to her , professing his purpose to marry her . She became a second time pregnant ; and after the defendant had been several times called upon to fulfil his promise and refused to do so , the present action was brought The prosecution was conducted by Mr . Culss * WELL . The Jury found a verdict for the plaintiff , damages
To The Landlords Of Irelasd. 1£Tt£B Ii.
TO THE LANDLORDS OF IRELASD . 1 £ TT £ B II .
Untitled Article
" i . true libourer earns that he eats ; geta that he gars ¦ owes no mm bate ; envies no man ' s huppineas ; lud of other bibb's good ; content under his o"wn priva-£ J * b ; &nd fri * c * " ^ P ride " ^ tlie mwiest comfort * of bis condition . " — Shakspeare .
Cfcavttgt Xntfu&Mcr.
Cfcavttgt XntfU&mcr .
Serious Charge Of Forgery.
SERIOUS CHARGE OF FORGERY .
Yorkshire Summer Assizes.
YORKSHIRE SUMMER ASSIZES .
Untitled Article
1 ¦ AND LEEDS GENERAL ADVERTISER .
Untitled Article
VOL . IY . WO . 192 . SATURDAY , JULY 17 , 1841 . "' ¦ " £ T 5 £££ r 5 Z £ " ?'
-
-
Citation
-
Northern Star (1837-1852), July 17, 1841, page unpag, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct859/page/1/
-