The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1869-05-29 00:00:00

THE LATE LADY FIRTH.

The death of Lady Firth by drowning has, it appears,
given rise to so many tales, likely and unlikely to be true,
that the family surgeon, Mr. J. C. Ellis., of Ifeekmondwike,
has thought it his duty to print a letter enitmdying a little
history of the unfortunate lady, and his own theory of the
cause of her death :
I can truly affirm," Mr. Ellisa writes, 'that not
two persons joined together by the holy tie of matri-
mony ever lived on earth more affectionately or more
endeared to each other than the late Lady Firth and
Sir Charles. About three years ago Lady Firth be-
came affected with one of the most painful neuralgic
affections it was ever my fortune to attend. After
suffering for about six months without relief, some of
the moat eminent men of the faculty in London were
consulted, and their treatment adopted for several
months without much benefit being the result. After
this Dr. T. P. Teale, of Isseda, was called in, and we
both agreed as to the nature of her ladyship's malady,
and also as to the means to be adopted most likely to
relieve her intense suffering. After a period of several
months Lady Firth gradually improved, and was re-
lieved from pain, but I am sorry to ray a disease set
in, which, I believe, led to the cause of her sad and
melancholy end. As the pain decreased she soon
became the subject of vertigo, syncope, absolute faint-
ness, and this coming on at any moment, and without
any warning, to such a degree as to cause her to drop
down in a moment and become quite insensible, I
have no doubt in my own mind that one of these
attacks came on while her ladyship was walking on
this most dangerous part of the banks of the river ;
powerless to scream or assist herself, she slid or rolled
Into the water and was drowned."

MEETING IN HYDE PARK OF THE
" HOUSELESS POOR."
Last Saturday, in accordance with An announcement
which had been made in some of the London dailies,
a meeting of what was therein termed the "unem-
ployed and houseless poor" took place at" The Re-
formers' Tree," Hyde Park, for the purpose of taking
into consideration the propriety of "legislating for
themselves," hereditary and misrepresentative legis-
lators having hitherto failed to provide for the require-
ments of the people.
At four o'clock, the time appointed for the muster,
there were scarcely more than a couple of dozen of
that unmistakable class which nightly fill the casual
wards of the metropolis, male and female, and at no
time during the proceedings did the gathering exceed
some fifty or sixty persons. The speakers although
proclaiming their views to be based on Scriptural
authority, indulged in anything but Scriptural allusions
to the powers that be. About tee o'clock an indi-
vidual, who gave his name as F. Riddell, mounted a
seat and proposed that Mr. Johnson should preside,
who at once took the position of chairman on one of
the park seats.
Mr. Riddell immediately mounted it, but almost
as expeditiously relinquished his position at the com-
mand of the police Nevertheless, he continued his
harangue to show that the land was the property of
the people, and not of the aristocracy, who usurpesi it,
and had robbed them of their birthright, the title deeds
to which were based upon Scripture, and would be
found in the 26th verse of the Ist chapter of the Ist
Book of Genesis. They hail, however, been robbed of
their birthrights by the aristocracy, who—although
they, the homeless poor, were called paupers—were
I themselves the greatest of paupers. There were
I thirty millions of acres of waste land in this country
which had been usurped from the people, twenty
niillions of acres of which, at least, were sus.
ceptible of the most perfect cultivation, more than I
enough for double or even treble the population. They
demanded that this should be given up to them, so as
to provide them with food, and if the Government
would not give it them they must legislate for them-
selves and take it. If this were done there would be
no pauperism and DO poor. After addressing the
assembly for about half.amhour, in the course of which
a smart shower of rain compelled an adjournment
under the adjacent trees, Mr. Riddle concluded by

moving—
That this meeting Is of opinion that the present system of
poor-la relief is both an injustice to the ratepayers and to
those relieved and that, therefore, It ought to be aboltshed,
and a self-supporting system on the soil substituted instead
thereof.
Mr. Shaw seconded this resolution, and it was put
and carried nem. con.
I The Chairman said, aa they wore disappointed in the