The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-12-07 00:00:00

some other moneys. The prisoner had stated to me that he
had a large sum of money out at interest, which he would
call in, when-he should _be enabled to,pay me and others.
This was not correct, as he has since ;old me.
By Mr. WHEELER—The body of the bill produced is in
the hand writing of a person named Shalcross who was for
many years a traveller for the prisozer. I and others have
searched for this Shelcross, but have not been enabled to
find him—we only heard of him.
Other witnesses were called,. ,rho spoke to not having
been enabled to find the person of Thomas Morris, of Tarvin.
MS LORDSHIP, after hearing a few remarks from the
counsel for the prosecution, as to the nature of the evidence
adduced, said he could not see that there was any evidence
on which to send the case to the jury. There was no evi-
dence to prove that he had forged the bill, or that he had
uttered it with a guilty knowledge; he might have received
it from the person Shalcross, 'innocently, and directed the
jury to acquit the prisoner, conceiving it to be his duty to
do so—as it was a point of law that was involved.
The prisoner's counsel said he had witnesses to character,
and that he should have been enabled to prove that his client
had been ruined by the schemes of Shalcross.
There was a second charge, but as the evidence would
have been precisely the same, his Lordship also directed au
acquittal, and the prisoner Was immediately discharged.

THE DYERS' STRIKE AT MANCHESTER.

Robert Snaps stood indicted with having on the 2nd of
August last, stabbed, cut, and wounded Mr. 'Crompton, of
the parish of Pendleton, with intent to, do him some bodily
harm.

Mr. J. CROSS, conducted the prosecution, and the prisoner
was defended by Mr. P. WHEELER.
Mr, James Cronipton : I am a dyer at Pendleton, Where
my dye-works are. In the month of August last there was
a strike amongst the dyers of Manchester. My men were
at their work in my place. About half-past frie o'clock on
that afternoon I saw five or six persons running towards me.
The prisoner was one of them; They had sticks as thick as
my urn in their hands. Before they got up to me they
said, " Here' the devil is," and began to strike me with
their sticks in all parts of my body. The prisoner said—
" Blast him, • kill him." I called out. "Oh dear." The
police came up and I escaped into a petty at the back. I
cb,sed the door, but the door was broken open by a tall man,
who struck me on the head. (The witness here exhibited
a wound he hid received.) The man said " Come out." I
went. out when I was conducted to .the Pendleton station,
and had my wounds exhibited. • •
Mr. CROSS . Are you sure the prisoner was there ?
Witness : I am. I have known him many years, he and
his father has worked for me for many years. I know the
prisoner well.
By Mr. T. WHEELER; The strike is over now, and the
men have returned ici• their work at the old terms. My
men did not " turn out;"—only a few of them. I only saw
the prisoner for half a second. The men who came up said
—" Come 'out, come out," as if they wanted to get my
hands out from the works.

Police-officer Barlow : On the 2nd of August I was on
duty near Mr. Crompton's clye-works, abotit six o'clock in
the evening. I saw about' twenty, running towards the
gate, armed with stick. They nnd others rushed into the
yard: When I and the other police-officer went into the
yard, Mr. Crompton waS on his knees and about six persons
were standing over him, beating him. I went up, and Mr.
Cronipton got away, but was afterwards again attacked. I
spoke to the mob and they let him go. At the time, Sir A.
Armitage came on the ground, and I apprehended some of
the parties, but was knocked down. On the 6th of Novem-
ber I apprehended the prisoner,- having been looking for
him since the 2nd of August, in Salford, Manchester, and
Pendleton.

By Mr. WHEELER. : There were between twenty and
twenty-five persons rushed into the yard. The men em-
ployed at the works stayed all night.
Tulford, a servant in the employment of Mr. Cromp-
ton, was in the building at the time the affray took place,
and fully corroborated the evidence already given. He dis-
tinctly saw the prisoner strike Mr. Crompton with a thick
stick, about two feet long. He had known the prisoner for
some time before the affray.
David Ditchfield, another of the prosecutor's employees,
saw from 80 to 100 persons about the lane near the works ;
the prisoner was amongst them.. •
Mr. Thomas Haywood, surgeon attended Mr. Crompton.
He had a long cut on the scalp, and other bruises.
This being the case for the prosecution, Mr. WHEELER
addressed the jury for the prisoner, and argued that the
evidence was not sufficiently conclusive, the prosecutor,
doubtlessly, being too much alarmed at the time to bring
this most disgraceful assault home to the prisoner, the
identification being confined only to the statement of the
witnesses.

He called several witnesses for the purpose of proving an
alibi,—stating that the prisoner, with others, were "picketed"
with other turn-out dyers, at a factory some distance off, at
the time of the affray.
Mr. CROSS repliei to the defence, after which his lord-
ship summed up the evidence, upon which he most minutely
commented, and the jury returned a verdict of guilty.
'The learned JUDGE, in passing sentence upon the prisoner,
said he had been Anima guilty, on what to his mind was
clear and conclusive evidence. He had been engaged in a
most violent outrage upon Mr. Crompton. It was admitted
by all that persons had a right to work or not, but it was
equally obvious that they had no right to commit such an
offence as they had. Had not, at the last assizes, two per-
sons been tried for a similar offence, and sentenced to seven
years' transportation, by the judge who tried, them, he
should have felt it his duty to inflict a much severer
punishment, but as such was the case, he should pass the
-same punishment, or a punishment tantamount to that,
for since the last assizes a bill had been passed
that transportation could not be inflicted for less than 14
years. He should therefore sentence him to 4 years' penal
servitude. As this was the first time the law had been car-
ried out, except in London, he would mention to the pri-
soner and to others who committed offences, that that
sentence would be carried out. You will now have to
work like a slave for the full period, instead of having your
earnings for yourself, your wife, and family. It ought to be
a warning. You will have to -work the full period of
four years in penal servitude.