The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1821-05-17 00:00:00

ed by. the Hon. Member (Mr. Wilbr ), in the
depositions he had read; yet.it t t that the
man in question had fired apim-tha people a pistol
loaded with ball, a fact whichlbree of the juryinen
who were on the inquest held upon his body, con-
firmed, of their own knowledge. It was not, there-
fore, very surprising if the populace, irritated by
such conduct, had inflicted sivage punishment
upon him, hut then it took place on the 17th of
August, and not on the 16th, us had been stated.
He, for one, had been willing to make the inquiry
by a Perliamentary Commis.ion, to have been
sent down to Manchester, but mew that the Go-
vernment hod so identified itself with the question
that it would no longer be useful. The inquiry
must HOW be by that House, and no honest Mem-
ber but what must give his support to the motion.
Mr. B. Wti.naanast thought himself called
upon, from what the Hon. Member had stated as
his understanding of one of the depositions which
lie had read last night, to say, that he dud not men-
tion the death of Campbell till he came to read
those depositions which were taken relative to those
who met their deaths on the 16:h August, but he
did not state that he met his death at the meeting.
Mr. BUNAL explained.
Mr. HORACR TWIN fold, that it was intimated
in the debate of lest night that sufficient ground
was laid for this application in the evidence which
was given by the prosecutor's 'Untie*, at the trial
at York. Ile had read the report of that trial,
and he thought, on the contrary, the evidence of
the defendant was a complete moaner and reason
for refusing the motion. There was no more evi-
drilee now than thare was when the inquiry was
proposed and rejected by the last Parliament.—
According to the evidenee of Mr. Tye*, the re-
porter for The Times, the number of persons who
marched in to the meeting, in military order, was
80,000, with flags and inscriptions. After that
lie did not want farther evidence to 'Mew that
there was terror amongst ;namable persons.—
The mode the Magistrates adopted was a repetition
a what had been successfully practised in London
at a public meeting to seize the leviers. From
the evidence fur she defence he fouivi the faet mta-
blislied, that after, if not before the seizure of
Hunt, there war en asaautt on die :cavalry with bricks
and stones, and from the appearance of the Magis-
trates, must have imagined that the yeomanry were its
danger, and that there was u necessity to aid them
with the military. From the tone with which the
trial at York was spoken of, it might be imagined
that Hunt had been acquitted instead of bring
found guilty by a Jury of his country. The Judge
on that occasion had charged the Jury, that if the
meeting endangered the public peace, it was an
illegal meeting, and lie (Mr. 11. Twits) had thought
ti,eiefore that ull the Bivalents for the legality of
it bad boeu abandoned. The question was, whe-
ther the danger of the yeomanry was such as to
justify the Magistrates is rending the military
to their rescue, in doing which the dispersion of
the meeting was the necessary consequence. Much
had been said of the violation of law, but if
application were made to a Court of Law the
Judges would say, you must prove sonic ill in-
tention or suotive of the Magistrates; • yet the
House was called upon to do that as a Court of
Entity which the dodges would refuse. He did not
dispute that WOW three or four of the yeomanry might
hare dime arts for which they could ;sot be justified,
bat it was clear that such offences were committed in
mess, and not in the execution of any orders.
The Government hail absolutely done nothing
theiuselve., but it was said they had expressed
uualloyed satisfaction that blood had been sited ;
but it WAS fur the blood which was saved, it war
for the blood which the decision of the Magis-
trates on that day saved the necessity of shedding,
that thailks were returned to thews.—(Hear.)—
The letter of Mr. nay, written on the eve of the
trausaction, gave a comet account of it, and had
not been impeached down to that hour. Had the
Magistrates treated the accounts which they se-
ceivud as incredible, and mischief had accrued, how
germs would have been their respousibility. He
did not pretend to vie with the Hon. Baronet
in Illustrations, but this reminded him forcible of
what the jester said to the priest : Suppose these
tidings of which you tell us, and about which you
give yourself so much trouble, should he false after
all, what a folly it would be in you."—" True,"
said the priest, " but if they be true, how much
greater will be your folly in not atteadiug to the
tidings." The reformers had grout advantages in
the mode of proceeding. If the horny asked for
took place, well,; if not, better still, for then a topic
will be open on which they can descant. When the
object was to get a premature judgment pronounced,
then ulterior inquties were scoffed at; for the troth
of tins he read an extract of Sir F. Bardett's
speech to his constituents. But now the lion.
Baronet desired further inquiry, notwithstanding his
own constituents had before decided the question,
upon the exhortation of his own emphatic speech.
But the billy before the Grand Jury were not then
thrown out, and owr that they are throwu out, that
is made one ground of the minims. otberwirse they
say there would be no appeal from the decisiou of
the Grand Jury. The constitution never meant
there should be any. Could it be said that it was
ally objection to the Grand Jury that they lived
near the spot where the trainactiosis occurred ? but
that was utterly repugostit to the whole of the com-
mon law. The principle of trial in this country was
entirely a local principle. Had the inquiry token

how would the Hon. Baronet have exclaimed against
such ani:nfraction of the Constitution; recollecting
iii what way he had characterised the majorities of
thot House, he, of all men, could, with the least
propriety or consistency, propose to surrender to
them one of the oldest and best securities for the
liberty of the subjectz-he meant the trial by jury.
—(bear, hear, hear.)—During the height of the
irritation and fever io the public mind when•these
events occurred, a parliamentary inquiry might'
have been useful in allaying that extraordinary ex-
citement, but it was a very different thing to say
that that which was of importance in 1819, it was
the duty of the House to institute in 1841.
Mr. Hosuouss said he could not recognize in
the speech of the Hon. Gentleman any portion of
that law under which we had so long flourished ;
he could not but see in it merely an excuse for the
infractions and violations of law, and that constitu-
tional system under which we had so loug.flourish-
rd. The Boa. and Learucd Gentleman bad re.
•