The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1874-03-28 00:00:00

M. H. B. SHERIDAN, M. P., ON THE LATE

ELECTION AND PETITION.

On Wednesday night a large and enthusiastic
meeting was held in the Public Hall, Brierley Hill
to hear an address from Mr. H. B. Sheridan, M. P.
Charles Cochrane presided, and he was supported
by Mr. Drinkwater Cole, Mr. S. Bennett, Mr. C.
Ford, Mr. W. J. Clulow, Mr. J. Steward, Mr. T.
Wood, Mr. W. Caswell, Mr. Isaiah Rollason, Ac.
The Chairman opened the meeting by referring
to the election petition, and said he hoped nothing
would be said that night to prejudice the case,
which had to be tried by a judge in their midst.
He awaited the result with calmness, believing
that the hon, gentleman by his side innocent of
the charge laid to him. (Applause.)
Mr. H. B. Sheridan, M.P., then addressed the
meeting. He was received with loud applause.
The member began by stating that a few of his
election bills were not paid, and its his enemies
were lynx-eyed, his London solicitors were coming
down in a day or two, and the whole of the bill
would be paid. (Applause.) The present meet-
ing was called to consider the political state of
the borough, for many of his friends thought
meeting was necessary at Brierley Hill, because
so many reports were about, and so many strange
statements were made by the Tory papers. It
had been &Ai& that the petition was not to be
resisted, and that was the kind of statement which
was Luting about. It had also been thought
that it would be well to have at the meeting some
large employerslof labour, and the representatives
of labour. It had, therefore, been deemed advis-
able to ask Mr. Brogden, M.P., and Mr. Alex.
Macdonald, M.P., and Mr. Burt, M.P.; but two of
those gentlemen had to be in London to attend
to important Parliamentary business, and the
other was in Leeds. (Hear, hear.) It was also
thought that a local employer of labour should be
present, and Mr. Cochrane was before them.
(Hear, hear.) The working classes of that district
were interested in what the Parliamentary busi-
ness was, for it was no less than an extension of
the hours for the exercise of the franchise.
(Applause.) They (the working classes) had
secured a great victory under great disadvantages.
To begin with the Catholics left them in a body,
in accordance with instructions from head-quarters.
(Shame.) By that, 1,000 or 1,500 votes were lost
to him. Then, again, the teetotallers, who asked
him to vote for Sir Willfrid Lawson's bill, left him,
notwithstanding the other social questions of past
days in which lie had helped them. They also
forgot the future measures which were to come
before the House of Commons; in fact, they
cadged themselves under the Permissive Billiban-
ner,,no other. (Here, hear.) 'The publicans voted
for and against him, and yet tho working classes
and the middle classes won. (" Hear, hear,' and
loud applause.) The working classes 111 no
leaders, except one or two like Mr. Cochrane, and
yet they won; and therefore he considered that
he (Mr. Sheridan) was entitled to sit as the third
working men's representative. (Applause.) It
had been said that he could not sit, but he had to
tell them that he had taken the oaths and his
seat, and that he had given notice of a motion
, respecting the unjust and barbarous treatment of
I prisoners on remand. (Hear, hoar.) He had also
been to the House to help Mr. Taylor with his
motion for the abolition of the Game Laws, and
Mr. Mundella in his attempt to have an alteration
in the Conspiracy Bill. Mr. Cochrane in opening,
had spoken of the petition being filed as though
it had any connection with him (Mr. Sheridan)
but it had not. Mr. Sheridan was not charged
with intimidation, or rioting, or breaking windows,
or with inciting the mob to do so. (Laughter.)
He was in his committee room all day, and the
petition was really that of some of the citizens of
the borough against other citizens. That was
proved, that the seat was not claimed from him.
Mr. Shenstone, too, was not the petitioner. But
supposing all that they alleged was true, there
would] be another election, and Mr. Sheridan
would present himself again. (Applause.) He
(the speaker)had tried to learn when the petition
was to be tried, but had failed. Mr. Sheridan
then referred to the attacks made upon him by
the local Tory press. and stated that as many of
them had been made since he was a member of
Parliament, they not only were piny of anticipat-
ing the courts of law—or contempt of court—but
they infringed the privileges of the House of
Commons in charging a sitting member with such
offences as they had. They had accused him of
saying that Mr. Shenstone caused the high price
of coal, but he (the speaker) declared to them
that he had never opened his mouth on the subject.
(Hear. hear.) He had never said a word about
the ruined homes around them, until the other
side had flooded the borough with the grossest
misrepresentations. But the principal questions
that evening were, were the riots of such a char-
acter as was alleged? Did they prevent any
voters from recording their opinions? (No, no.)
Was pr petty destroyed in Brierley Hill? (No, no.)
How was it then, that that place was particularly
,mentioned in the petition? To answer those
questions they wanted the honest, stmightforwanl
testimony of those who saw the proceedings, and
every man who wished to be a witness might de-
pend on being able to give his testimony without
fear of after-results, for to interfere with a wit-
ness, or to try and influence Ilia evidence, was a
most serious offence against the law. The petition
was an attempt on the part of the masters to force
upon the men a member against their wishes, and
against the n ember returned. (Applause.) Dur-
ing the seventeen years he bad represented
Walley this e had been no rioting, and it was
sininge that when the true friend of the working
min—who c tine forward in their interests ahme,
awl not as lw, Mr. Sheridan did, for his own selfish
eads—(langlitcr) appeared, the riotiong should
ly.gin. (Loud laughter, and How about '64t';
H e heard—but there wa,s always slander to hear—
that there was a tory supseription at the back of
the petition, (A Voice : It is untrue.)— Mr.
Sheridan I believe it. (Laughter.) The mem-
ber then asked who it was that commenced the
disturbances, but. .

Mr. Cochrane begged he would not touch upon
that part of the subject.
Mr. Sheridan, continuing, asked whether the tory
papers were to have it all there own way. (No.)
He would ask those who saw, as he saw, cartiotals
of ruffians, %tined with short staves tipped with
iron, taken through the town to Brierley Hill to
Cradley and to Pensuett—he would ask them to
come forward and say so. (Hear, hear.) Such a
lot of men would never have been allowed to leave
a town where there was a properley constituted
police force. In another town, the name of which
he could mention, a band of armed ruffians were
stopped by the police and required to find bail or
leave the town, and they left the town. Had that
been done in Dudley there would have been no
riot. (Hear, hear.) He had information that 13
such armed ruffians had been seen in an out-house,
from which they were dislodged at Pensnett. Who
brought such ruffians to Brierley Hill? (A Voice;
" Shenstone.") Mr. Sheridan, continuing, said he
wanted them to prove that the peace. He had
such evidence as would surprise them as to the
employment, and that near home, too. His own
particular friends and his son were attacked; for
when at Quens Cross, near the Mayer,s works—a
place where a number of men were always assem-
bled—a ruffian jumped up behind and struck at the
inmates of a vehicle in which his friends and son
were riding. Mrs. Thompson was cowardly as-
saulted, but the persons implicated knew somehow
of the warrants, and absconded. The magistrates
at quarter Sessions gave sentences of eighteen
months, whilst the judges at Assizes gave seven
days' sentences, and all those things to be enquired
into. He had engaged comFel of ability, and Lou-
don solicitors in addition to his local ones, and they
should be enquired into
Mr. Cochrane said he had sat and tried persons
on both sides, and it was with great regret that he
had to see such a thing.
Mr. Sheridan (continuing) said he could save
.£2,600. by retiring and fight another election, but
he and they must fight the petition to the last.
(" Hear, hear," and applause.) His motto was
"Fight and win." The member then paid a further
tribute to Messrs. Macdonald and Burt, and sat
down amid prolonged applause.
Mr. D. Cole then proposed the following resolu-
tion :—" That this meeting thanks Mr. Henry B.
Sheridan, M.P., for his address, and expresses its
unabated confidence in him."
_

......
Mr. Steedman seconded the resolution.
The Chairman, in putting the motion, complained
of the present plan of registration. It ought to be
compulsory that the name of every entitled to vote
should be on the register. As a magistrate, he
had heard cases on both sides, and he would ex.
culpate Mr. Shenstone and Mr. Sheridan in hay.
ing personally engaged any of the ruffians whose
rioting disgraced the borough. (" Hear, hear,"
and applause.
Mr. Sheridan then proposed a vote of thanks to
Mr. Cochrane, and, in doing 80, said he should
hold another meeting in Brierley Hill, and bring
with him the gentleman he had mentioned. The
chairman had said it was rather high-flown to say
that the masters were trying to force a man down
their throats, but they were trying to do it by

SATITEDAY, MAN. 21, 1874.

their long purses. A great constituency like that
had to see expended £5,000. in order to secure the
man of their choice.
The vote was then carried with loud applause.

STNGULAR ASSAULT CASE.—At the Petty Sessions, at
Brierley Hill, on Monday, before Idessrs. b'. Evers and
H. Smith, John Waldron, farmer, was charged by Caro-
line Malpas with assaulting her on the 19th instant. Mr.
Addison defended. Complaisant said that as she WU
going from Kinver to Enville, on her way to work, the
defendant came running after her, and asked where hie
her hacker was. She told him she knew no-
thing of it. Defendant said she had stolen it, as no one also
had passed. Defendant went to her child, which began
to cry, when she told him that if he made her child cry,
she would scratch his eyes out. Defendant then caught
hold of her by the shoulder, and puttied her across the
road; and she would have fallen had not a tree seen there.
Defendant matched her basket from her, and looked into
it, but found no "backer. There was a great crowd of
persons round, and defendant kept charging her with
stealing his ' hacker.' She told him that she was willing
to go and be searched by the police, but defendant said,
the police.'' She hart been unwell ever since.
—Rebecca Drew gave corroborative evidence. Mr. Addl.
son addressed the Bench for the defence, and denied that
any assault had been committed ; and if there was it was
of a trillong character. The Bench considered that an
assault had been committed, although the defendant was
no doubt excited, and should line him 5s and costs, We.