The Sun.
London, England, 1830-01-09 00:00:00

BOW-STREET.

Yesterday Dillon and 0' Bryan, the two men
who were charged with stealing a watch and its ap-
pendages from the person of Mr. Williams, the co-
median, were brought forward for a re-extutiination,
after which the parties were bound over to pro-
secute.

INHUMAN TREATMENT OF FOUR CUM,
DREN AT IIEYSIDE, NEAR OLDHANI.

From the Depositions taken at the Workhouse, Royton,
Jan. 5, and at the Session-room, °Mani, Jan. 7, h!-
fore the Rev. J. [Laden, one of his Majesty's Justices
of the Peace for the County of Lancaster.)
About noon on Saturday, Jan. 2, a woman resid-

ing at Oldham-edge, observed a girl pass her house

in-a
wretched condition, apparently wandering she
knew not i+ hither, shivering with cold, and her fea-
tures bearing the impression of famine. The good
woman, melting with pity, questioned the girl from
whence she came, and whither she was going ? but
the only information she could obtain was, that her
name was Hannah Bell; that she came from Mr.
James's; the name of the place she did nut know;
and that she war then leaving her situation. From
the deplorable condition of the child, and the mystery
of her narrative, the woman was induced to take her

to the police-office at Oldham, where, on being
further questioned, she stated there • were three
others at the place she had left in as bail a state
as herself; it was also ascertained that She must
have came from Heyside or its neighbourhood.
Mr. Chadwick, the head constable, ordered that
she should be taken care of; and after she had been
revived by nourishment, he wrapped her in a cloak,
and placing her in a cart, conveyed her to Heyside,
where she pointed out the house of one Jonathan
Buckley, at a place called Bull-cote. Mr. Chadwick
entered, and asked to see the other apprentices.
Buckley demanded to know by what right Mr.
Chadwick interfered about the apprentices; and Mr.
Chadwick gave him to understand that if he did
not produce them, and surrender them up, he would
take such measures as would compel him to do so;
Buckley still refusing, the officer waited on the Rev.
J. Ilorden, at Shaw, who immediately accompanied
him to the house, where they found Sarah Home
and Hugh Carr, two of the four apprentices, weav-
ing fustian, John Hoy was laid on a miserable pallet
up stairs, blind and lame frem the wounds he had
received on being beaten ; and Hannah Bell was
already under their protection. The girl Home
was in a worse condition than Bell. She was so
feeble she could scarcely throw her shuttle across,
and was carried from the loom by Mr. Horde') him-
self. In consequence of the shocking state the
children were in, it was determined to remove them
at once to the workhouse : they were accordingly
wrapped up, placed in a cart, and conveyed thither;
and the wretch, their master, was taken into custody,
and placed in the lock-up at Shaw.
Sarah Home appears to he about 16 or 17 years
of age ; her visage is long and pale, her eyes heavy
and dim, her skin shrivelled, her foot wounded, and
her belly greatly discoloured. • She, together with
Pell, was laid upon a couch by the fire. She was
in a very feeble state, and in a voice at times scarcely
articulate, deposed as follows :-1 have not been
bound to him I was to weave, but he beat me so
I could not. He beat me with a rope with knots
at the end of it. He beat me any where, where

the rope might light, and sometimes he beat me
with a stick. (Here she deposed to several attempts
of her master to seduce her, ai:d subsequently stated
that he was more violent with her, in consequence
of her refusals to submit to his wishes.) He beat
me at all times of the day; he beat me last Friday
(New Year's-day,)jl had been winding. I could not
make my cloth strong enough, my foot was so sore
with his kicking me down stairs. It was a good
while since he kicked me down stairs. We never
had any butcher's meat, he used that himself.
When we did not do our work, we had sometimes
one meal a day, and sometimes, two, of porridge.
When we did not do our work, he used to keep us
up till one or two o'clock in the morning, and we
got up between six and seven. lie set us three
yards a-day to weave, of cords.
The Overseer, in answer to a question from Mr.
Horden, stated that three yards, of that description,
would be a good day's work for a stout man.
I could not weave the quantity he set me to do.
We worked till between two and three on Saturday
morning last (the day they were removed.) He
used to say we could do a yard in four hours. I
have woven three yards in one day. It took me
till one or two in the morning. While I was winding
on Saturday morning, he and his mother kept saying
they wished I would go away, and Alick throttled
me, telling me to run off. Buckley sometimes wove
a bobbin or two himself, then he would go into the
house, or come to look at our cloth, and if it was
not right, he would flog us. He begun his work
after he had his breakfast, and now and then his
wife would come and weave a little. He has struck
me on my head with the straining-up-pin (gene-
rally a piece of iron about 18 inches long, and 1i in
circumference.) He hit me hard with it. He used
to strike me hard and make my head bleed. He
kicked me on my belly. lie also hit me on the
side with his fist.

The wretch, with the greatest effrontery, made
some allusions to the character of two of the girl's

sisters, but Mr. lionlen, on account of their irre-
levancy, would not suffer them to be answered.
James Hoy, an orphan II om the Duke of York's
Asylum, at London, and who, in the commencement
of the pievions examination, had, in consequence of
severe pains, been removed to another room, was
now brought back. He had'a mature look for his
size, which was that of a boy about 12 years of age,
though, according to the regulations of the institu-
tion from whence he came, and the length of his
servitude, he should be in his 21st yetti.. His lcs
were swollen and discoloured, his body also bruised
and wasted ; his thighs and posteriors were shri-
velled to the bone, and his loins were covered with
sores. Ills head had been beaten almost to a jelly.
The surgeon exhibited a wound on it which, he
said, penetrated to the skull. The bosom of his
shirt was bloody; the hair about his ears, and the
ears themselves, were clotted with stiffened gore;
they had grown flat to his head with the healing of
frequent wounds, and when brought to the work-
house he was quite blind. Being seated on a low
scat, with his body resting on the couch-chair, he
was examined as follows :
Mr. Barlow—When were you bound apprentice
to Buckley 'r'—lt is going on six years. I was bound
for seven.

At what time did you begin to weave in the
morning ?—Sometimes before six, sometimes it was
after six, and sometimes seven.
What was the general time ?-01, he wakened
us as soon as he had a mind : he never heeded what

time it was.
How late at night did you weave ?—Till between
one and two o'clock.
Was it ever after two ?—Ay, sometimes till be-
tween two and three, and twelve of a Saturday.
Did you ever weave your three yards ?—Ay, I
wove it many a time.

Mr. lIORDEN—When you wove that, what time
did you get up; and leave off working P—ln sum-
mer at five, and held till dark.

Mr. Barlow—What had you to eat ?—Porridge
and Potatoes.
Had you never any butchers' meat ?—No.

Had Buckley any himself ?—None so oft ; some-
times he had a bit, and sometimes he'd give me a
bit of We had not as much as we could eat at
none of our meals.

Mr. HOIWEN—Did he abuse you anyway ?—Ay,
he abused me very badly.
What did he do to you ?—He beat me with a
rope; ay, and with his fist, and his clogs; he throt-
tled me round the neck, so as I could not shriek
none.

Where wag it he heat you ?—in the loom-houge,

Where; on your body ?—Any where, where he
could ; sometimes on my head, sometimes on my
body.

Are there any wounds on your head ?—Ay, its
full o' wounds.

Mr. HORDEN—You said, when' he knocked your
eyes up, he put you to bed; how did he knock your
eyes up ?—With his fist, because I was crying out :
he struck me with his fist over my eyes,: because I
would not let him pull my breeches down, to beat
me with a rope; then his wife came and pull'd 'ern
down, an' he beat me an' she best rue after.
Has he made all the marks now on your body ?
Ay, him au' his wife too.
When he kicked you, where did he kick ?—IIe
kicked my thigh.
Ilad he clogs on when he kicked ?—Ay, he ever
had his clogs on. I was in bed two days an' two
nights till Saturday, when a gentleman came and
fetched me down stairs. I could not see; he did
so by me once before.
In answer to a question by Mr. Barlow, he
stated, he considered Hannah Bell and Hugh Carr out
of danger. Hoy, he thought, was threatened with an
inflammation in the head, and Sarah Home had
signs of an incipient consumption ; he would not,
however, pronounce positively as to Hannah Bell.
Her deposition, which was as follows, was therefore
taken :
I am an apprentice to Jonathan Buckley, of
Bull-cote, near hloyton. I was bound by the over-
_ __

seers of Lancaster two George :tlacks,of Manchester,

bombazin-weaver. I have lived with Buckley two
years and a fortnight this Christmas. I can't tell
how long I lived with Slack•, but I left him be-
cause his wife died. Buckley set me to weave
eight-shaft fustian. I was to do three yards a-day.
I could not weave a yard in five hours. I was
sometimes six. I did not in general do my whole

work. I could not do it. In- summer we -u%ed to
go to bed sootier, but in winter it was one, two, or
three o'clock when we weft, and he made us work
till that time. Very often, this winter, we have had
only one meal a•day, which was porridge, and when
we were late with our work we had nothing to
them. He limited me to one meal a-day because I
did not do my work, and I did not do it because I
could not, 1 was so beaten and so hungry. He beat
me often with a rope with a great knot at the end,
and he has many times got the yard stick and beaten
me over my head and made great lumps on the top
of it. He struck me hard,—as hard as he could.

The surgeon stated that she was very much
bruised, particularly on her back.
_ _ . . .

Mr. iiORDEN—What did be make those wounds
on your back with ?—With a rope, and with kick-
ing me. Every time. he saw me off my loom, be
kicked me. Ile kicked me all over my b nly. Ile
gave me this black eye with a rope last week. I
don't know the day.
What made your hair come off from your head?—
It was with luggin me.
Why did he do it ?—Because I did not weave
my cloth strong enough.

(She now became sick, and a little water was given
her. After some time the examination proceeded.)
Cua you write ?—No, Sir.
Take hold of the pen, then.
Girl—l could write once, but I cannot now.

The poor creature was as miserable a looking ob-
ject as. the other girl, perhaps more so. Her hair
had been pulled up in places by the roots, leaving
the scalp bare and wh►te, her hack was growing
out, and there were extensive bruises on the loins.
Her body was wasted, and her limbs like those of

the other two—discoloured and swollen. Her voice
was, bowever, clearer, and on the whole she ap•
peared stronger.

Mr. HOkDEN now intimated that he would take

the deposition of the boy Carr, and such others as
might be necessary on ThurAay, at Oldham. The
prisoner was therefore hand-cuffed, and conveyed by
Mr. Chadwick to the lock-up at that place. He is
a low and rather stout built man, with an extraor-
dinary and displeasing cast of countenance, on which,
throughout the whole of the examinations, not the
faintest emotion could be traced. It is said that lie

has four or five children of his own, who, unlike the
poor orphans he maltreated, looked remarkably well.
About two years since the overseers of Royton
wrote to the governor and trustees of the Duke of
York's Asylum, informing them of the.manner in
which several of their apprentices had been treated
by the weavers of Heyside, to whom they were
bound; the letter was promptly answered, and Mr.
Hardman was assured that no more children should

be suffered to come from that establishment to !ley-
side. Since, then, however, several have been sent
down, from which we may infer, that unless the
public promptly step forward, the orphans of our
brave soldiers who harefallen in the service of. their
country will still be left to perish under tortures and
privations such as are now disclosed.

• OLDHAM, JAN. 7.
Mr. Leach, the surgeon, Ivho has attended the
unfortunate children since their removal to the work-
house, to-day si(rncd a certificate that they were not
in danger. Buckley, their master, was then brought
before Mr. Horden, and informed that. he must find
bail for an assault with intent to commit a rape on
the body of Sarah HOme,—himself in 601., and two
sureties in 10/. each; that in the other three cases
he would be indicted for an assault, and would be
required to find bail, himself in 301. and two 'sureties

in 20/. each; and that 48 hours' notice most be
given. He was then reconducted to the lick-up.
A communication has been forwarded from the over-

seers.of Royfon, to the Governors of the Duke of
Yolk's school, relative to this atrocious transaction,
and as to the general treatment of apprentices at
Heyside and its immediate neighbourhood. A war-
rant has also been issued for the apprehension of the
man named Alick, who was stated to have wantonly
tnaltreated one of the poor girls. The discovery of
these enormities has created a great sensation in the
country, and all classes call loudly for the exemplary
punishment of the perpetrators.