The Sun.
London, England, 1839-01-03 00:00:00

MANCHESTER.

(FROM OUR OWN CORESPONDENT.)
The following is the speech of M.;".• Richard Oastler at
the melting of the Council of the Manchester Politie3l

Union on Tuesday night
Mr. assreta—l speak now in the presence of the Council
of the Political Union of Manchester, and I believe that every
one of you represents at least 1,000 of his fellow-workmen.—
(" Hear," and cries of " More, more.") I heard that the
Political Union was about to meet to night, and after having
done all I could to serve your friend and my friend, Mr.
Stephens, I thought I would come down into the Committee-
room, which I had expected to have been composed of sixteen
or eighteen persons, but I find it consisting of upwards of 100.
I am glad to let the Government know that the meeting in this
room to-night does represont something like 60 or 100,000
human beings.—( Cheers.) I know; not whether they will be-
lieve that fact or not, but that is their concern, not mine.
What your deliberations have been about I ci,".'n't know, except
that portion I heard relative to the meeting to-*sorrow and
the appointment of a Committee to assist Mr. StephOs in the
persecution to which he is now subjected, instituted not so ;such
by the Government of this country as by our own friends, the l=t;-
litical Council of Birmingham, and the infernal Union in Ireland.
You have adopted what you conceive to be the best plans, and I
have no doubt they are the best. It did, however, occur to me, as
an old Tory, Oat the best way would be to leave Stephens in the
hands of the lavr, and the people, during the proper operation
of the law, shook; remain quiescent. You have ruled other-
wise, and I hope it vr;2l be for the best. I can only say that
if my presence can be e . onsidered in any way advantageous,
you shall have it.—( Cheers. ) At the present moment all my
political feelings, and every sensation of my heart beats only
towards the safety of my friend Me, Stephens, and I would
net wish to depend on my own suggestions in such a case,
but will willingly obey your dictates ; and Lem I am, an old
Tory mind you, willing to do any thing the Rac:jeals think to
be best to save Mr. Stephens from the fangs of the Bir-
aniogham Council and O'Connell, for I believe these tss-o par-
ties are his prosecutors, and not the Whigs of Manche:ter
or the. Government of England.—( Hear, hear.) While I am
upon my legs allow me, as I understand there are some Repor-
ters from the London Press present, and as they may think fit
to report something of what the old King says, to give you an
anecdote whieh w;11 explain the character of the two men now at
car together—Daniel O'Connell and the Rev. John R. Ste-
phens, Daniel O'Coni2ell asserts, and all the papers report
his malignant sayings, and that proves what a degenerate
state the nation is in—Whig, Tory, and sham-Radical, all
publish every word—Mr. O'Connell says, and he tells the
world, that Joseph Rayner Stephens a blood-thirsty monster
-- i
that he deserves the execration of mankind, and that
it is
tthe business of every man before he obtains the assistance of
Daniel O'Connell, and his Precursors to denounce him as th e
cnemy of mankind. These words were re.echoed by every
Nowspaper in the kingdom, and the people of England, und..
the impression that they were true, imprisoned in a felon's cell,
at: the bidding of that damnable monster O'Connell, the nnin
with whose alleged atrocity all England rung the other night.
-W I° is he ? I will tell you. The very day before Mr. Ste-
pheos' apprehension, I was his guest, at Dukinfield—the
day hofore he was lodged in a felon's bed, and in a felon's
'cell, at the New Bailey in this town, while O'Connell
the traitor was lying on down and feeding on dainties
ot the expense of the Irish paupers. There came a
tap at the door, and the servant said " a poor Irishman
wants' to see you, Mr. Stephens." We were busy,
exceedingly busy, but not too busy to prevent the benevolent
philanthropist to lend a moment to the sighs of a poor Irish
pauper. The man was adntitted f he had no shoes, no hat,
and he was very ill, and he trembled with cold and weak-
ness. He came to thank Mr. Stephens—to thank " the exe-
crable blood-thirsty monster" for what? For having taken