The National Register.
London, England, 1820-04-02 00:00:00

110

( Mr. flunt's TriulemtittuedJrom Page 10;..)
were carried, it was important for the Jury to look at the
inset iptions which were on them. if any of those insetip•
lions were illegal, or calculated to excite disaffection or
discontent, then lie who bore ouch flag, and all those who
woe arranged under it were guilty of an illegal act, and,
as fat as they were entice' tied, the meeting was illegal.
In looking to the inset...weenie it might also be necessary to
see how far they corresponded with the resolutions which
had been agreed to at Smithfield. The. e were "Univer-
sal Stafraee," " A 'initial Parliament," and " Vote by Bal-
lot." ‘• No corn laws." Now if the words "no core
lawa" iiikeiet only that the laws on the importation of coon
should be repealed, nothing was more harmless than the
inscription. The crimitielity of the motto would lie in
wishing to have them so repealed by threat or time. Nei-
ther was there any harm in the words '` Lithe and be
flee," unless the Jury believed that there was u bail in-
tention in calling for such %mime The next inset iptioa
was " a elation without epiesentation is mijiist and ty rat:-
Die:4o." If uy this was meant that it would be tint us:
and tyrannical to 11.1 x any 10.111 1.1110 had not a vole for a
Menthe'. of Puclidint ut, it WOlllll be nailito tut, and
calculated to excite diteketion in the minds of those
V 110 Sc ere pt cent, a great boil) of a limit hat nut votes.—
But it was quite au error 11/ suppose that auy man iii the
eountry ow. unrepresented. Lvety Member of n1;1141110111
110 oily represeidell the particular place for w Ince lie aas
ehosen, but also thew hole of the kingdom, and it was li.•
• duty to attend to the interest of the country at large. He
would tnerefore be oven to the imitate and advice of
even malt. Time Jury were well 1/Aare that it was one
turret) the working classes which were excludra from the
right of Vllll4, there were tacit who had copy lead propel ty
to the an 111111 l t of thousands a year, who bad 1111 rii;la to vole.
A man might have a lease for 999 years of very large pro-
perly without a tight of voting, and so it must be ; but
,would any man sn), that these men were and repre-ent-d,
Cr that their int ert'SlS IA tilt WA COllsllllol' Inertly !e.t.a W.!
they them, Ives Mil not vole 1 In these übservatioas the
J would oldy go along with him as far as they coincided
•av it h their own opin'ons. Another banner had the inscrip-
tion, " Labour is the source of wealth." Su it was, and so
he hoped a would continue to be, and that those w
hi
acquired wealth by their limiest tabour should enjoy it, and
trimotio it rhino to their posterity.. The next flag had the
.thscription '' Let us die like men, and not he sold es Oa et P."
Surely, there were 'to slaves in this country ; and if the
oiseriptioli meant to convey that any portion of the people
were sold as slaves, such a meaning would be calculated to
excite disconteut. The Minute of Bamford's patty bore
" Parliaments annual," and Suffrage universal,'- " Unity
and strength." If any of those banners were meant to convey
to the eye what in sock a meeting no voice could convey to
the ear—if they meant that the people should ter disafliected
or discontented till they had obtained those objet is—then the
parties aho tote the Bags, and those who marched with
teem, would be guilty Man illegal act, and the nieetlng, as
far as they were conceriied, would be illegal. He would
now come to another part of the evidence—to the training
and drilling; and be should tell them, that if .the object of
both was to produce greater order and regularity in those
who attended the tueetieg on the 16th, to give a greater
'degree of strength to the party, and thereby to overawe the
government, or to give confidence to any seditious opit l i 11l
to procure a legal object by motives ut rear, then it would
shave been illegal, and the tneetiog ut which they assembled
after. such lr.uuiug would be illegal also. It would be cri-
minal as to all Ouse whip acre concerned in training for such
en
object, thou it there might be thousands of other; attend-
ing it who knew nothing of such motives, mid whose pur-
pose was quite legal. Now, as to the part which melt
indi-
• took to the meeting:—First, Mr. lluut came to the
neighbourhood of Manchester. He was met at Bullock-
Smithy by itloorliouse, and he went to Manchester on the
9th, where he addressed the .people, ca ataiuly not in a
wanner respectful to the magistrates. He remains in the
neighbourhood till the kith, and nobody knew bow lie
spent his time till then; at least it was not in evidence,
any farther than that lie was at Johnson's. It was a
question for the consideration of the Jury whether lie in
tended to propose the resolutions carried at Smithfield ;
at all events, lie had offered no evidence to show that lie
bad any others. Mr. Hoist and Johnson were both e-
sent when the people kissed at Murray's, and at the police;
but it did not appear that either of them had Advised ut
encouraged it. Johnson was on the hosting% and pro•
posed Mr. Host as chairman; and it would be for the
Jut y to say, how far lie was likely to know the resolutions
which were intended to be proposed. This would en-
tirely depend on their opinion of his intentions. He next
came to Mouilititi-e, and certainly lie appeared to have
had less pat tieipatiim in what had passed than all the
others. The July would look at his case, and, judgiug by
his acts, would see how fat' lie was connected with what
was done. Conjeetnte would not be antlicieet against
hits, and if only such existed, lie wa. eolith d to au ac-
quittal. The J uty would mat lirek at the case of So ift,
and see hots far lie was connected will; any previous mo-
tives. It appeared front the evidence of Mr. Healy
Orton, a repot ter, that Swift was present, mid exhorted
the meeting to be peaceable; Mit then this WAS 011 the testi-
mony-of the witnesses whose recollection as to other points was at
least questionable. He (Mr. Justice Bayley) lied before told
the Jury that evidence of words from recollection of this kind
ought to be looked at with caution. tic did not mean to say
that Mr. Orton told any thing which he (Orion) did not "relieve,
but the Jury would do well to consider whether his recollection
of what passed was the most accurate. He next came to Healy ;
and if the Jury believed that he meant to impress on the minds
of :he people that they should have any change in the represen-
tation by means of force or threats he would be guilty. As to the
words " No Corn-lsws„ as lie hail before said, that was a point
on which much difference of opinion existed in the country, and
a wish to have thou repealed could not be criminal. But the
words, " Taxation without representation is unjust and tyran-
nical," were, if they bore the meaning he had before said, cal-
vedette! to excite disaffection, and would, in that ruse, be
illegal. Hereford, it appeared, healed a party ; if the bunnies
which were borne by that party were not calculated to excite dis-
affection, there was nothing in the manner or conduct oh the
people to excite alarm Johnson was proved to have been at the
hustings. but it would he for the Jury to say whether it ea, for
die purpose nt constructing them or not. It apt three lie Ind
used the woad "enemies' in one of his speeches t i the people.—
Ile (Mr. Justice Bayley) was story fur it. That word should
not be alianal by any one set of men in this country to another,
where all ought to be united in one common bond of amity and
union.
Mr. Hunt.-1 hope your Lordship will excuse me if I say
pate word. fourl .ordship, in adverting to the Smithfield meet-
ing. has easel that I proposed the Resolutions. My Lord, it is
the custom for whoever to chairman at suet; meetings to put the
eilutions, and they are banded to him for that purpose. I did
is chin, and I gave a copy to the gentlemen councekA with