The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1885-05-16 00:00:00

THE DYNAMITE CONSPIRACY.

TRIAL OF CUNNINGHAM AND BURTON

I a

At the Central Criminal Court on Monday, before
Mr. Justice Hawkins, James Gilbert, alias James
Gilbert Cunningham, and Henry Burton were put on
their trial for treason-felony in having endeavoured,
by means of conspiracy with others, to cause the
various dynamite explosions that have recently taken
place in the metropolis, with a view to overawe and
intimidate her Majesty and the Houses of Parliament.
The Attorney-General, the Solicitor-General, Mr.
Poland, and Mr. R. S. Wright conducted the case for
the prosecution; Mr. H. C. Richards and Mr. H. E.
Duke defended Cunningham; and Mr. Little appeared
for Burton.

One hundred jurymen were summoned on the
panel, and a long delay took place before the usual
number were sworn in. Mr. Richards, on the part
of Cunningham, and Mr. Little, for Burton, challenged
seven out of the first twelve who were placed in the
box. Subsequently eight more gentlemen were
challenged, and it was not until after eleven that the
proceedings commenced.
The Attorney-General then opened the case for the
prosecution. He said the prisoners were now on their
trial for treason-felony, which in many respects was
almost the same as high treason, except that, owing
to the Act of 1848, it was no longer punishable with
death. This offence was one of levying war against
her Majesty, with intent to overawe her counsels or
intimidate Parliament. But to establish this charge
it was necessary to show some overt act or an inten-
tion on the part of the prisoners to levy war. It
might be the destruction of life or property, or an
attempt to commit such aipts, or to conspire with
another for the purpose of so levying war. Therefore,
if, after hearing all the evidence which he proposed
to call, the jury should arrive at the conclusion that
both the prisoners had combined with the intention
to destroy property or to injure her Majesty's
subjects, or to take their lives, then they were
guilty of levying war. He then proceeded to give an
outline of the evidence he intended to call, and con-
tended that it was such that he should submit to
them that it showed that the prisoners had combined
together to destroy property. What he was anxiou4
to submit to the jury was that the evidence against
Burton in connection with the attempt to damage
Charing-cross Station, was conclusive, and that he
would be able to bring home to Cunningham the fact
that it was his hand who destroyed a portion of the
Tower.. He would ask the jury carefully to consider
the evidence, for while no man could overrate the
importance of the trial to the prisoners, on the other
hand no one could overrate the necessity of stopping
by means of an impartial administration of justice
these attacks against the law, which were as cru?.l
and cowardly as it was possible to conceive.
Twenty-one witnesses were then examined, who
spoke to the discovery in the luggage offices of port-
manteaus containing infernal machines; and it was
shown that part of the c intents of the bag at
Charing-cross corresponded with the dress which
Burton was wearing when he landed from the Donau
at Southampton. The case was adjourned until the
following day, when evidence was given in respect to
the explosions in Scotland-yard and at two other
i
places in the West-end on May 30, and also n re-
gard to that on the Underground Railway in January.
Witnesses identified both the prisoners as having
been in the train to which the explosion occurred.
The case was again adjourned.

The official peace negotiations between France and
China began at Tientsin on Tuesday.
At the Liverpool Police-court on Tuesday, Josiah
Bates, horse dealer and farmer Thornton Hough,
Cheshire, and Joseph Best, solicitor' appeared on
remand charged with having obtained by false pre-
tences the sum of £4O from B. Rigg on October 14,
1884; £3O from W. Payne on January 14, and £250
from John Alhen on February 23 last, and also with
having on the above dates conspired to obtain the sums
named h,y false pretences. It appeared that the modus
operandt was to advertise for partners. Mr. Marks,
who appeared for the prosecution, stated that since the
remand last week the correspondence which he had
received from all parts of the United Kingdom in refer-
ence to these charges and to the persons implicated
was saindwhat overwhelming, so that another geuerai
remand would be required. This was grauted4

SAT(TRDAY, MAY 16, 1885.

s iscdtantous Znitiligmo

HOME, FOREIGN, Ain COLONIAL,-

GORDON'S Dwans.—lt is stated that as rnuch 8,5
€O9O was offered for the copyright of General Gorda -

diaries. _
FAVOURITE COLOURS.—Maize-y011077, SICV-131110,. nr-cl
rosebud are the favourite Parisian colours Luis spriag:,,
AMERICAN RAILWAYS.—It is estimated that the r5l-
- in America employ, directly and indirectlb

2,0-00,0 SO men. _
HEAVY INstrumicEs.—The late Lord DudleY ca;
insured in various offices to the extent of upwards

.300,000.
A COSTLY FUNERAT.—The cost of the late I,°rba
Mayor's funeral at St. Paul's is about 000, of wh'e
£550 are undertakers' charges. isa
FAMOUS PAINTINGS.—It is stated that the rreBss 9
Government has purchased three valuable painting
formerly belonging to the Blenheim collectionbe
.-7
namely, the "St. Daretha " of Del Piombo,
"Andromeda " and the" Bacchante" of Rubens.
A PARK AT NIAGARA.—The much-talked-of bill I°,
creating a public park along the American side
Niagara Falls has now become law.
WYCLIFF.—A statue of Wycliff, presented by lift:,
C. H. Hawkins of Harwell Park, Finchley, has bee--
unveiled at Christ Church (Congregational), Westgate'
en-Sea.
DEATH OF AN FxPLonEß.—News has arrived
Berlin of the death. in the Cameroons, of Lieutenano
Tilly, the leader oi a German expedition sent out t
with t

explore that part of Africa.
TERRIBLE AVALANCHIL—According to news 0:111.0
Constantinople there has been a terrible avalanche .1
the Ala Dagh Mountains, near Lake Van, in Arraelllts
A caravan, numbering seventy-five persons, which
passing at the time, was swept away and nearlY /1,113 p
hilated, no fewer than sixty-eight of the corcig"'
having lost their lives.
LARGE RECElPTS.—According to M. Soubier, ifl
year 1884, 190 performances at the Grand Opera, rartb
produced 2,646,269 francs; 160 performances at
Opera Comique, 1,734,137 francs; and 95 perforraspc
at the Theatre Italien, 1,127,525 francs.
BISMARCK'S BUSINESS.—Prince Bismarck, it nasYll:
be generally known, is a paper-maker, and lono
£lO,OOO a year—which is more than he derives fr9lll,
his official emoluments—out of extensive paper ta9
which he originated and works himself.—" Prio"'"

Register." „le of
A UNIQUE PUBLICATION.—A retired business flo
Chicago has published a volume, upon which he lip
been engaged for four years, containing the laer.s.
Prayer printed in 180 languages, ancient and inolle7s
The characters of the language are employed in air°
every instance.
est
A FREE LIBRARY Nov WANTED.—The Lord esos
of Glasgow on Saturday announced the result of le
poll which had been talen on the proposal fesiri,tpre
g
adoption of the Free Libraries Act in Glas ow -1-"- a • t inl
were 22,755 votes for the adoption of the As be
29,946 against it. The Act will not therefore . ;
adopted in Glasgow. Several speakers, in dial:11/10
the Lord Provost, said that the depression of trade
the city had caused the adverse decision of the poll. s
"PARADISE LOST."—According to the " Acadertl's
the Rev. George Edmundson has in preparation ~,f
volume entitled "Milton and Vondel," a curiositY,
literature, in which he endeavours to show that
was largely indebted in the composition of his "Fr;
disc Lost "to various poems of his Dutch eenw",oo
porary, loost van den Vondel; and that " Ser''rekl
Agonistes "also shows marks of having been sufSge'"
by a drama by Vondel on the same subject.
HYGIENIC MUSEUM.—AU important step has now beell
Klieg
made at Berlin, the direction of permanently sseo
those interested in hygienic science the advanirsi„ s
which were so generally appreciated at the frygl'iLd
Exhibition of 1883. A portion of the former Indus'r; s
Academy in the Klosterstrasse is to be fitted 111) B.cia
permanent Hygienic Museum at a cost of 23000,
like sum is to be spent on the arrangement of a
ratory. Ss'
LAST WEEK'S WRECKS.—EIeven British vessel' ;
eluding two steamers) and ten foreign e6'isswir,
vessels were reported as actual shipwrecks last ssf:'sll
making the total for the year 399. Off the Ilr'tsiee
coasts seven vessels (six British vessels and one ir,%l,
steamer) went down, two British sinking by oolbsti;so
one life being lost. The mail steamer Humberto:id de.
foreign vessels were reported lost with all 114,31300
Corresponding week of last year: Wrecks, 31
for year, 648. By collision, 4.
A SLANG EXTnESSION.—A correspondent, serlting.cote
"Notes and Queries," says that the slang espreestie
down with the dust" is used by quaint Fuller 10
00t
"Church History of Britain": "'I have been Y 03d
physician to cure you of your squeasy stomach ;,rbe
here, as I deserve, I demand my fee for the sense: fled
abbot 'down with his dust; 'and, glad he had
so, returned to Reading, as somewhat lighter in P.s,uos
so much more merry in heart than when he
thence."
PETER TUB Garsiss—The correspondence of P
ceote:.
the Great is being prepared for publication. A briog
mission of Russian literary men was appointed ton,
together the materials for such a work, a atei
thoroughly have they accomplished their task that s
have collected more than 8000 letters and doeum4;
of the highest interest relating to the greet svoegs
Among these documents are some of the exercise
in which the young Peter wrote his writing lessrs„
There is also a letter dated 1688, in which Peter, ti 376
only six years old, describes to his mother the ss?l
which he had seen in progress is the shipbuildinWs—
• t rereislawi.
ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.—The additions to the 703°'
logical Gardens during the past week include a
yellow baboon from West Africa, presented by _ll7
Wilson; a Lesser white-nosed monkey from 11'2st
Africa, presented by Mr. James S. Jameson ; a creel.
pigeon from Australia, presented by Mr. J. Harri.el:
a Glausus gull, European, presented by Mr. G.
a common viper, British, presented by Mr. W. suss's,
Pain; four common lizards, British, presented by
H. Hanauer; a common squirrel, British, tn",";
wigeons, three pintails two shovellers, five consinos.
teal, European,purchased ; a yak, born in the gariCieso
DEATH OF QUEEN EMMA.—News has reaches' ss,.
Frarcisco of the death, on the 25th ult., of EraL;ii-e
Queen Dowager of Hawaii. Queen Emma was sae
widow of Kamehameha IV., who died in 1863. see
was the daughter of an Englishwoman and a ,11;,,hy•
chief, and was adopted by Dr. Boole, an Englie▪ sg
sician in the islands. Before her marriage wifliss.nisa
Kamehameha she was known as Miss Rooke. " -e-sr
the present King Kalakaua was elected in the Yrto
1872, on the death of Kamehameha V., Queen 800,
contested his election, and a civil war was threaten
But opposition to the new king ceased on his reel%
tion by Queen Victoria. Queen Emma arrive of,
England on a visit in July, 1865, and left in /
1866. g ealo
SUN'S RAYS.—PrOfeSSOT Edward S. Moorse, of
U.S., has succeeded in utilising the sun's rays 0' t•
wo
ventilation of, and to a slight extent warming, ;0
buildings. One was a hall of 80,000 cubic feet oalnief'est
where a shallow flue of corrugated iron about fir°, tse
in width, and painted black, was secured againsi.'tb
side of the building, receiving the out-door air a; Os
base and discharging it into the upper portion e's,at
hall. The whole air in the hall was changed a,.r.„„0
once in eight hours, and the mean of the observa,
showed that the temperature of the air was iner't-as t
31 deg. Fehr. in passing through the flue. Asa rartea
of heating, the efficiency of the apparatus is caleil,lbet
to be 45 per cent., which is certainly in excess ors.t.os
of other methods of artificial heating in practical er
tion.--" Engineering." ft
INTERESTING MANUSCRIPTS. The " Athenlios
states that a very interesting and attractive exhiblt„st
of manuscripts relatieg to the history of music has]
been arranged in a series of cases in the Departrneten,
Manuscripts of the British Museum. This ceroPrsseleiis
sive collection, of which the value from a Y"ssil,
educational point of view cannot be over-estiraaro
comprises early illuminations and drawings of m .10S,c
instruments; numerous specimens of the notall°s3
known as neumata or neumes, of which the muset'„a
possesses examples as old as the tenth centurysn.
from almost every part of Europe; manuscripts
trating the notation, written with two, three, fours
and six lines; choral books of imposing dimensionai
the early ballad and instrumental music of Eissil_sal3del
and several specimens of autograph music by •Ic"'.
and other masters of the divine art.