The Sun.
London, England, 1852-07-22 00:00:00

NORTH NORTHAMPTONSHIRE

ELECTION.

SERIOUS RIOT AT WELLINGBOROUGH THE
MILITARY CALLED OUT.
• WELLINGBOROUGH, JULY 20.—Within the last
twenty-four hours the inhabitants of this town have
been alarmed by one of the most serious riots that has
occurred here since that which nearly terminated in
the Earl of Cardigan's death in 1832. At the pre sent
moment all violence is suspended ; but a superintendent
of police lies, it is feared, at the point of death, the ex-
citement of the people is extreme, and nothing but the
presence of a strong military force, which arrived this
morning from Weedon by special train, guarantees the
Preservation of the public peace.
In accounting for the origin of this outbreak, I must
say one word on the relation in which the great inn/k of
the population stand to the proceedings of the pre sent
election. Wellingborough is a thriving little town,
situated in an agricultural district, but itself subsists
almost entirely by the shoe trade. This is pretty neatly
the condition of all the surrounding villages; the men
who reap the harvests derive the greater portion of their
income irone labour performed on the seat. After this I
need not say that the population is most deeply interested
in the maintenance of free trade. This has increased
the amount of their eaiployeeent as well as enhanced
the value of their remuneration, and they know it.
To a man they are supporters of the policy of Cobden
and Sir Robert Peel. On Wednesday last the nomina-
tion of candidates took piece at Kettering, and it was
expected of the great Whig families, in which the
county abounds, that they would sanction, and even
initiate, the candidature of some one who might: rally
round him all the supporters of free-trade and liberal
government, and so cast Mr. Maunsell, whose bowl it
is to have gained no new idea during the last twenty
years. The excitement was great, as it was learned
that the Spencers and Fitzwilliams were unprepared to
take
any share in such a battle, and two independent
freeholders nominated on their own responsibility the
Ron. George Wentworth Fitzwilliam, already returned
for Peterborough. A poll was demanded, to take place
on Monday, and it was thought that at least the electors
would have an opportunity of recording their pro-
tests against the principles of protedtion, which had
been so openly avowed by the old Members. As the
day of poll arrived it was announced that Mr. Fitzwil-
ham refused to stand, would not even sit if elected, and
that thus two Protectionists must be returned. As, how-
ever, there were legal difficulties in the way of with-
drawal, the form of polling voters for the Tory was gone
through, and yesterday, accordingly, the poll opened at
Bettering, Clipstone, Thrapstono, Peterborough, and in
this town. The Tories came up in high feather. The
farmers, booted and well horsed, were loud in their
triumph and early in their cups. A large crowd of arti-
sans and others stood round the Wellingborough polling-
booth, every now and then expressing their mortni-
cetion at seeing big, burley, well-to-do men abusing
their privileges as electors to vote to themselves
a tax on their (the spectators') bread. Instead of con-
ciliating the unenfranchised, the Protectionist voters
aggravated them by word and gesture, taunted them
with their desertion by the Fitzwilliam family, and by
this means increased the excitement of the bystanders.
At length one of the voters, a young farmer of Finedon,
came up, and professed to fraternise with the crowd,
praised the " hig loaf system," and said ho was going
t,_o pea--
for Fitz ivilliam. Arrived at the polling-booth,
° eup a
bawled out, with needless ostentation, " Stafford
(Derbyite) only," and then turning round to the
crowd greeted them with a horse-laugh. The patience
of the bystanders was now fairly gone, and a pebble
struck the farmer's head. Ho immediately turned round
and brandishing a stick threatened to knock the brains
out of the first man that came near him. The atones
now Came flying
and.
in 1"3:
about the booth in a perfect shower, the
Pell-clerks fled with the magistrates, and the people
swept the temporary erection away in an instant. A
few farmers now came to the rescue of their injuredo
fellow,under Superintendent
and the mob consolidated its force, and
upon them, The county police, only
and theS six in number,ofet,
bore down
unable to
oapegrriionatiefnudrefantta Knight,
withdrew. The
ptoolrfaeas,toreq
thousand, were sorely
"Pe with a mob of nearly a
41.111littlehdet
pollthe mbooobfbu,sinogr stwonheast,orsetrickL,
came to
fragments
®f
-.. this melts, by what hand or instrument
has not yet been ascertained, Superintendent
thehoeffedthe which
field
froernddeeraedd.
Knight received a wound in
him insensible, and he was carried .
The magistrates had in the meanwhoialed-tgroaanrsffeerrareodf
ttih)
ee
poll books to the Hind Hotel, the h
Conservative party, there intending to keep
.open the poll.
The mob then proceeded to the Bind,
than I can record they destroyed the entire front of the
house. For want of opposition, theopefliceebeing limited
to defensive measures, the aelgterwasf
thenh crowdf abated
plat©. 50 others on loth aides and an armistice took
besides the policeman,
aboutthan common eeee -alidecnhad
received injuries of morn
eis skull fractured, rit'a'. One
I .on for trsoaot:s,"" two
mac, it is believed, has
ribs; broken heads aroexeeeoating.y numerous, end con-
tusions are thought nothing
efray;
about
tele-
graphic itch dei sgip aidteisohtoWg 8f aosonsfetnhtet9o3Wrdeunedi 9 :a nd9erPs.ll::liaarne tdde lbaei
four this morn ~
nay
are now quartere.'' c
the exeitemeet '' 4.:tha
Whit'° Hart
This u iys surrounded irl'h is
6"3
gre" The
I special
ncpolling thlßoi:se, a
only pacific demonstrations cec,,,,,,.4 slaprogueialerc7n2t,abbieust
are sworn in to the nut:11;0e of 40, and now occupy the
yard of the Hind Hotel,