The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-12-27 00:00:00

ined ell
head, for he never stirred while Mr. Ward retitle 0
the spot. Mr. Ward was covered with dirtasan: bruiser,
exhausted; but the only injury he received was
night re,_
We gave in the NoIiTHERN TINES, a short time ago, a on the back. In the excessive darkness of thnlea of W.
brief account of a desperate convict named George Wood- Ward did not very distinctly see the featuresbe able
to
cock, who was sentenced to six months imprisonment at assailants, and it is -doubtful whether he will Du
the recent Devon winter assizes, for escaping from Dart. identify them.
..___ moor Prison. It appears that, although so young—being ._. 14
a
only 25 years of age—he boasts that he has been in almcst
TEE BALLOT, A CONSERVATIVE 1114"--
ASO
every gaol in the country, and that ho has committed
—...-.. oft
" every crime short of murder." He has been convicted llasi 4
under various aliases—Sigismund, Colheck, Johnson, Mas- Under this title, Sir Arthur H. Elton, Bart,,,t ois,
sey, and Thompson. In the spring of 1853 he committed given to the world a tract of forty or fifty PageliPaitical
a burglary at Bedford, and was sentenced to eighteen It is probably true that just now no great iishonti;
months imprisonment. While in gaol be behaved with question engages the hearty sympathies of
.Led gni
great violence, and made several attecks upon the governor, We are in danger of becoming an object of n Ens'
fainter
Mr. Roberts. lie was threatened with corporal punish- derision to the victims of oppression abroad, as
nod]l
e,
meat, but this had no effect upon him, and in the following citing insurrection, and then leaving it to be, claw $
July he smashed the furniture of his cell, and threatened to in their blood, and affecting to labUur for tue 'or des'
take the lie; of ar.- - freedom, and in reality procuring. a longer leasise:as yell
potism. But as respects affairs at home, which Bifairl
ought certainly to concern us more nearly than,ch lel
abroad, there is little which excites attention; ion.
hold of men's hearts, and rouses them to vigoroliseeesea
'fine great means of rectifying abuses its various o;cise
ments is to improve the quality of government IAO
fusion of a more patrio:ic and conscientious spirit.raisin%
this cannot be done in any other way than In's to ;be
the character of Parliament itself. This brines °doubt,
question of Parliamentary Reform. People, n°
of the
feel that something is amiss in the working tiseedt
•
--...5i. °reins by knocking political . system of this country; they are . dissa
rdioBll
e floor. Sn vi,sl—. __ • -
that and justly, with the conduct of affairs both In tenaloe"P
a Tn. times and on great and stirring emergencies; the:lo
u too, that there are anomalies in our electorllll
;k offensive to common sense. But they have very
tielly
I • notion that the plans propounded will set things 6 4) tbe
.1c But it may be asked, whether, in order to 01' hale
i 1 attention of the public mind, we should siroP.so or
el recourse to some sweeping measure of parlianseinoolleel
air electoral reform—such as household suffrage, and , dist
1004 'te
y parliaments ? On the contrary, it is un eht
V any indiscriminate extension of the i.frfsteet
les r would meet with warm support from tu'oosiro
bulk of electors throughout the country. Any cseot it,
..es- meddling with the franchise at this inen,, Doff
laths
we A.,
802110 oL,
_am, in 1848; to prove that the ballot, or in other word' eoe
'e in., z,.s, for step" effectual method of protecting voters from externals oh
I ..1 in,` ences, is, in its immediate and ultimate conseqoe aloe
. e to e ,
for conserve ive rather than revolutionary. It is a tor
•in 10, of voting, moreover, demanded in all sincerity.llO aetion
-'try. section of the community, and any adol joie6
!
he hae which should honestly take it up, and Press
od el.!
'vranee Parliament for adoption, would secure hearty g°
eh 11134
s mu and immediate co-operation throughout the leso
will b..
, anc breadth of the land. Be assured, vote by balinttio seer
•hich established. Be assured that it is a real want of ft 11
u his and therefore, sooner or later, it will be supelleu. for tllO
for t not an unreal. sentimental notion ; a cry got se se; 0
time; occasion ; a quack recipe for a sham (Me •to 00
dto mere instrument for dilettanti performers -oca.id
t of a noise with; a stage for political acrobats t%fferettO
e esc. gambols upon.
.[t is something very lee ordei
was Men ask for the protection of the ballot tub, tba
red I to enable them to exercise their political riglitieseliont
; sin( election of members of Parliament, and vote f°' edit.
11 ne t
he they please. They ask for it because they rea Y_see io
was Now, no large section of the community ever.014 ie.
ty ga justice persistently, without in the end Obtalu,sf oar
if Da Therefore, I affirm that, as so lare a portioee.,"aocitld
ey at electoral body do actually suffer fort he want of it,. oh
1-, th persistently call upon the Legislature to grant it ifbeae-e. ,
api it will infallibly, sooner or later, be granted to.tw on
d ser Liberal statesmen, when vote by, ballot is made ittefroq
not need to tranquillize the feelings of their supP?4,reeeet
throwing them savoury morsels, which, though 3` r 100
innocuous.may hereafter prove seriously pernicious'. elot
foliate le En cal and Conservative statesmen too, when , freelio
shall have been chosen by the present electoral bou,.l2;oegs
fairly, and honestly, will be in abetter position turi
tati°ll
Six men were brought up before the Sheffield bench of
magistrates a day or two ago, on suspicion of being con- how far' it is expedient to widen the basis of_repee_sfeendrate:
At present we arc acting in the dark. We i" wenn
reined in a daring burglary at Manor-oaks, the residence 4
of Mr. W. Bradley, brewer. The prisoners were all from ing conclusions from imperfect premises. . We yid be
eoei
Barnsley. except one, who is a potter at Rawmarsh, near Positively assert what sort of Parliament
e",. Bofors
Rotherham. The burglary for which they were appre- returned if electors voted simply as they pleas st_tiffht to
that body. we
tilts We
hended was one of the most daring and violent character. we materially augment the electoral body °
Entrance was effected into the house by forcing open with know the precise working of And
Id k°°ll
crowbars the window of the diningroom, which opens do not know. And it is impossible we shoo , uodo.
upon a grass lawn. Five men entered the bedroom of Mr. until it works without artificial restriction anu trictil
and Mrs. Bradley armed, one of them with a revolver
pistol and the others with bludgeons loaded at the end influence. I repeat, then,. that the ballot is a a .500
with lead, and all had their faces covered with masks, conservative measure ; and, further, that it is
ii Fieslieo
and were otherwise disguised. Mr. Bradley was attacked of common prudence and expediency. That it_tlesd.' a
by the men as he lay in bed, and in endeavouring to pro- . measure has been, it is hoped, plainly demonstee
sehen
tent his head from the blows one of his fingers was frac. For some reason or other, it is difficult to comp_.„irit
tured, his arm cut to the bone, and other serious injuries how or why, it is believed that vote by ballot is indells'erest
received, from which he has been confined to his house and tendency dangerously democratic. Herernuet
_b.:No
until yesterday. Mrs. Bradley threw herself over her confusion of ideas, or otherwise a taint of somethteto
husband to protect him, and succeeded in getting him out dishonesty. The object of the ballot is not to puto
of bed. She then pushed him into a corner of the room, the hands of the working classes any fresh privilege
and, placing herself in front of him, shielded hint from the to enable them to exercise a privilege violence of the burglars. Repeated threats were used The ballot cannot l the votes of the worltunee,
multip y
that they would murder Mr. Bradley, but would not harm
k. Z unlerhand, e_t
classes. But it is sneaking, skulking,
his wife. Mr. Bradley entreated the thieves to spare his
in-'
allegations Olt
English. It is common to reply to such life, and gave them up his keys and all the money he had
country ; tbre
the vote by ballot is no new thing in this already
..e.,
in his pockets. The thieves ransacked every rocm in the furthern/e,i :
house, and carried off with them a booty of about £6O in it is practised at clubs and elsewhere;
cash, a bill of exchange for £lOO, two gold watches, and bribery and intimidation are more sneaking, nr.re bet,
silver plate of the value of about £lOO, While five of the English, than voting ia private. This is trueJoiadet
burglars were engaged plundering the house. two or three nevertheless, lam censtrained to admit that the etTis iiot
others were seen on guard outside. From information does not wholly satisfy me. Say what we rag' axle to
which had reached the police they had apprehended the so manly. so dignified, so inspiriting fora Man hie] to
prisoners, but no portion of the stolen property had yet to slip his vote into a locked up box, as it is fo!the toe
been found. Mr. Blackwell, who appeared for the prose- walk boldly up to the polling booth and sing out at ;risme
cution, said Mr. Bradley had not been able to leave home of his voice the name of the candidate for who.,lnrollreee Liribvig,
till that morning. He, with Mrs. Bradley and the servant,
to vote. Well,grant all this. And what does it
.1:1 inere— of
had seen the prisoners in company of a number of other
men in the prison yard, but. they could only identify two little or nothing. It is a fact, that a large, 4 . systel:o t
of them—Dickenson and Gledall. As he did not Wish to number of electors cannot, under the presenAedeeann°,,,
keep in custody any longer those against whom he had no voting, exercise their franchise as free men• i,"..:, to t'l e
evidence, he asked that the others should be set at large, decide the question submitted to them accorale,emee of
and that Gledall and Dickenson should be remanded to merits. Human nature is human nature. lr°:ase °,13,,,
Friday, when he should be prepared with further evidence. rank, of wealth, of power—living a life 4en-d liii,'e*
A public meeting has been held in Sheffield Park (the pleasantness, fearing little save the aches „; 0117
district in which Mr. Bradley's residence, the scene where of disease, or the cold consciousness of ar,`7t Yo'its
the late atrocious burglary took place, is situate) to con- d - have • del taxis an
no right to subject to a Creel
sider what better means could be adopted to protect life nd hat
poorer and less fortunate fellow-creatures, a line t
and property. The ticket-of-leave system formed one of
the principal topics of discussion. Mr. George Allen air of lofty patriotism declare that if they dineersereeunea.
moved the following resolution :—"That this meeting test and ask to vote as they please, withouti_okieg,
fe
deeply regrets the vast increase of crime in this country, from without, they evince a shabby, Sh , enCO hjasit and the consequent insecurity of life and property, and English dread of publicity. What nee'
oli tl eqi
pledges itself to sink all minor differences in considering you for officiously binding this burden to eho(Pd
the cause, grappling with the evil, and bringing about, if backs ? Why should they be comieelled best' Is
possible, a better state of things." It appeared from the between voting for the candidate they like lioolor
speeches made in support of the resolution that a good the good will of customers and employers, f Wel;
deal of alarm prevailed in the out districts of Sheffield, and land agents ? It seems sironly to savour,°„oritit,
and that householders had appointed private watchmen for tinentpresumption,this • exhorting he English -to the
g t r UP, al
their protection. It was stated that people were obliged classes to eschew secret voting, and swagger t part
to go armed when they went out at night, and were also
compelled to bolt, bar, and line with iron their doors and poll like men despite all the trouble and
i' oiest Po
windows. The resolution was carried, and another reso- cause them, whilst we ourselves, voting for tu`. look .4
lution was also proposed, recommending an increase of without the mintiest fear of the consequence! to trial
the Sheffield police force. complacently with our hands in our pockets, ail" 0 o°%
they undergo in the exercise of rights enn,a.el Ye eeelaii,
theirs as ours. " Let the galled jade evince,' be short
" our withers are unwrung," '' Let us .We ut)the
straightforward, open in giving our votes- of .0,
sutler from external pressure. Yon, my friends'ourihr al %.
poorer classes, do suffer. Well, keep tIP "ballet",—No
The garrotters and burglars are beginning to get the Look at us. We don't want
et vote:, s 0
worst of it. A few more such successful efforts in resis- We spurn it. See what a noblexample we,Th— ball°li a
tance as we have had lately, and we shall not hear of so doubt, as has been said, the adoption ne 'e seif ii'llt
many of these dastardly attacks. We have much pleasure a " confession of iniquity," a sign or symbol - if g—
in recording that an attack by highway robbers, on token of infirmity Yet if iniquity exisdesrnirreeit'ityfellie;;
Tuesday evening, upon Mr. Charles Ward, of the Vine can be fairly brought home to us—yet is 'e
wile the
Hotel, Tomcross Lane, Sheffield, was successfully repelled vades the body politic, why affect to be sinless',splatvee
by that gentleman in such a way as to give the robbers a
.onte We
"taste of their own quality." Early in the afternoon Mr. to be impeccable ? Certainly, when we i• ojeisos ee.
fastidious grimaces made by unwilling P°ll' t us t°
Ward went by train with two of his children to Masbro',
for the purpose of taking them to the house of his sister at the Ballot is presented to them, it might tempt t„ WI
Greasbro', to spend the Christmas holidays there. From claim, e Leave thy damnable faces and begisticelaeteee
Masbro' they all walked to Greasbroe where they arrived must be, must. Do not stand shivering and geed!' tv°e ge
in safety, and Mr. Ward prepared to return about five ou the brink. It is but a plunge and then Yon -;to,ble', er
o'clock. Mr. Ward's sister warned him that several at your hysterical reluctance. The Ballot is inet•the be' 4
persons had been stopped by robbers on the road between
Greasbro' and Masbro'. Mr. Ward, for the purpose of .sure of that. The sooner we are accustoi.nread_thoaictits, it.t,tinellir
I'o deny that no inconveniences, no d weed preseern.
self defence, accepted a stout walking stick, and, thus the use of the Ballot, would be foolhardy a" objec"ith
armed, set out to walk back to lelasbro', whence he
soots vr
tuous. But no remedy is free
ifsroamttensd_andootfrbadtteest
intended to return by the six o'clock train to Sheffield.
At a lonely spot on the road, near the farm which adjoins Physic has its unpleasantness ;
Barbot Hall, he met a man on the footpath, to whom he said injurious results. But its unpleasantness i 3 trine,bet on
" Good night." Receiving no reply, Mr. Ward's suspi. bodily anguish : its injurious effects are a
snot, °holt
dons
were aroused, and he walked on quickly, keeping than death. £he doctor is an unwelcome vi 1 sues
a sharp look out. After he had gone a short distance he the while we prefer him to the undertakev•tion of "ot
sawn another man advancing towards him from the that the ballot is essential to the heathy "we cal.
site side of the road. He keptj on his way, and the present electoral system. I submit that .tbetit
to
fellow approa.chee, saying something about its being a
Lena
fine nieht. Mr. Ward immediately replied " Yes, it is ;" estimate the efficiency of
websve
ballet. I submit that we cannot therefore_ss until that
and the man immediately asked, " Have you got any
money ?" " Yes, I have," coolly replied Mr. Ward ; "do suggest measures for imroving that system develoit)rico
you want it ?" "Yes, you must give it me," said the seen how it works with, the ballot. That `,av ani .011/ fellow. Mr. Ward (who carried his stick close up against system, to expand it in any direction, to Play logieor.s
his side, so that in the dark the man could not see it) at with it at all, is—if I may use the expres!suoribine 'd the
once, with great presence of mind, resolved upon the premature. It is the act of an empiric Prunandian eso
course to pursue. He said to the robber, " Suppose I patient whose constitution he doesnot unders;i_iog
give you the money, will you not hurt ma ?" " No," symptoms of whose com metro
the million 01
replied the fellow; " give me all you have got, and I will at. Further, I contend that the concession to ,
nropo ,
not hurt you." While this was passing, Mr. Ward, in •
"1"
in the shape of an extended
. not libtira lied ;
order to throw the fellow off his guard, pretended to be plaint he is merely 4
r annually talked about by anti-be roc iter
unbuttoning his coat to take out his money ; but suddenly, ° - than a he under open voting prove little better , with thee na
going back a step or two, he raised the handle end of the
stick, and dealt the robber a tremendous blow on the side
of the head, which precipitated him to the ground, but, on the other hand, when combined
nary vii, of the Ballot, may prove a source of eflmagi
Immediately, the man whom Mr. Ward had fiat met, peril to the nate ,n. That this is no law of the ' aria
and who, no doubt, had been lurking close by th assist sooner or later the Ballot must be theddisioneseltelf
his companion, came up and attacked Mr 'Ward. He for to withhold it is unjust an
untry oitill3, the
seized air. Ward before he could strike witn hi.; stick, a injustice and dishonesty must in this co
_tien of the
barrasstnen.tlieeer
struggle ensued, and they fell together. Site. Ward, ri, That the proieurhe wea`eld
,pie over and collapse.
however, who is a powerful, muscular man,• cot the best 13 clot ma one da prove as important to / or%,
of the conflict. He beat the robber at his own game.
• doW" - OP
Seizing the ruffian by the throat, he favoured him with
such a squeeze as would give him a practical notion of few as it isy at presyent to the necessitous Iraq' . ;het 17.
self-sufficient or dictatorial,.
ear, estly diseleiin any intention of laYing letY e
sPicralti eeperieesileeet
the pleasures of being garotted; and linen, when the man in a
relaxed his hold, he got up, took to his le•els, ;eel madeas
contest
_sing
the best of his way to Masbro', which he reached time of the evils of an election
conviction results partly from lora" at pr aod
enough to start by the six o'clock train. The other fellow conducted, partly
had no doubt been rendered insensible by the blow on the reflection. from cool deliberate issuem'

TEE CAREER OF A NOTORIOUS CONVICT.

y one who

gover-

nor, however,
him, and he w

with the assistanc.

overpowered

under rest

Twards

the result ha

artunately I]

)n one

occasion he closed the door im-m

ing the cell, with the iatentioi

a governor
therwardi

stated, of stabbing him—'

hing
Frustr

and then desl-oying himself,
design, he exhibited alternate signs of rerw

in. his blood,

a his diabolical

e and fury

and on being releasad from restraint
himself. Being detected in this at,
warders. he endeavoured to dash out his
.mg
his heed against the floor. So violent was his conduct that
for six weeks he was secured, hand and foot, to hii bed. In
the month of August he was placed in a lunatic asylum,
and here Woodcock assumed a quiet and even pious demea.
,rew the keepers off their guard, and on the

o stranile

one of the

nnur, which a

He was not

;or In the next month he was committed to
r gaol on a charge of theft, and Was sentenced to a
,moment .and ten years' penal servitude,

month's impr
While in DT

Sims, having

ascertained

ATTACK BY GAROTTERS 6 SUCCESSFUL

RESISTAIVCE,