The Sun.
London, England, 1854-03-25 00:00:00

TEE PRESTON STRIKE.

COMMITTAL OF THREE MORE DELEGATES
PRESTON, FRIDAY.

The committal of seven of the operatives' leaders has
already been announced. Yesterday, the borough bench
was occupied with the cases of Jas. Waddington, Wm.
Parkinson, and Joseph Dolphin, also charged with a
similar conspiracy. The proceedings occupied until late
in the evening. The following was among the evidence
produced :

William Abbott, warehouseman in the employ of
Messrs. Birley Brothers, cotton spinners and manufac-
turers, Preston, deposed :—I was sent over to Ireland
for the purpose of engaging-hands. Succeeded in making
arrangements with a number to come to Preston.
Those persons were chiefly out of employment, and 130
of them were in the union workhouse of the Belfast
union. I paid the passage money and railway fare from
Belfast to Preston for 141 persons, who were workers.
I landed in a small boat before the steamer with the
Belfast emigrants got to the quay. I saw Joseph Dol
phin, William Parkinson, and another person I did not
know. Dolphin said I was a nice man to go and de-
lude persons in that manner, the father of a family, as I
was. I said they might mind their own business and I
would mind mine. W. Parkinson said, what would I
think if they sent them all back again. I said I thought
they could not do that. I next went to the railway
station at Fleetwood for the purpose of getting the car-
riages down to the quay. The train was nearly due,
and I did not succeed in getting the carriages down.
Parkinson followed me, and took a ticket for Preston. I
did not see him afterwards. I went back to the Nile
steamer, which had then come alongside the quay. I saw
the man whom I did not know by name on board the
steamer, in the midst of the people I had brought
over. I heard him tell them that I had deluded them,
and they seemed quite exasperated at me. Previous to
that time they had been quiet and contended. In con-
sequence of their feeling exasperated, I left them for a
short time. I saw no one interfering with them in the
steamer except the man I did not know. I returned to
the people in a short time, and found them landed near
to a public-house called the Victoria. Dolphin and the
man I did not know were amongst the people. Dolphin
said to the people, " Come with me and you shall have
something to eat." I said, "If you will come down to the
station with me you shall have plenty of good cheese
and bread, and hot coffee." I got nearly all to go with
me to the station. I kept my promise them, and gave
them good bread and cheese and hot coffee. While
they were in the station I saw Dolphin and the other
man, but did not hear either of them say anything to
them ; they appeared to be mixing with them at the sta-
tion. After the people had got refreshment at the
station, Dolphin and the other man went away,
and most of the people followed them. I brought
the remainder, 40 in number, on to Preston. I lost 101
at Fleetwood.
John M`Laren, 15 years of age, one of the immigrants
brought from the Belfast Union, said, when we got to
Fleetwood a man came on board the boat and took us to
a public-house. He told us to go back to Belfast, and
not to go to Preston, or we would be killed ; he said he
would pay our passage back again and give us half a•
crown a-piece. This was on board the boat, and he said
he would take us down to a house and !give us some
coffee and bread and cheese ; I don't remember he said
anything more. Don't know who that man was. We
were afterwards told that if we went on to Preston we
should be killed, as there were 10,000 waiting for us
on Wednesday night. I went back to Belfast. We
should not have gone back to Belfast, only these
men told us we should be killed if we went to
Preston, and we were frightened. I remained in the
public-house all the day. I only got 2s. to go back
besides my boat fare being paid. At night before we
went off, we got bread and cheese and ale. Dolphin
went back with us to Belfast, and landed us at the quay
and told us he would meet us at the workhouse gates at
four o'clock ; he met us there at four o'clock ; and he
went to the master to got us in. When he came back,
he said the master would not let us in without a line
from the relieving officer. I and some other boys who
had returned from Fleetwood want to the relieving
officer, and he gave us a line to go into the workhouse,
and we got in. Since then I came over to England aid
paid my own fare to Fleetwood with the two shillings I
got ; and an old man, a ;grey-headed man, got us a
ticket for Preston.
The parties were committed for trial.

DEATH OF COLONEL MOUNTAIN.—Died, at Futtyghur,
India, on the 18th of last month, Colonel Armine
Simcoe Henry Mountain, C. 8., Aide-de-Camp to the
Queen, and Adjutant-General to her Majesty's Forces
in India. Colonel Mountain was taken ill on Sunday,
the 29th of January, when on the march with the Com-
mander-in-Chief, Sir William Gomm, from Cawnpore to
Futtyghur, and died in camp at the last mentioned place,
mourned and lamented by all. Colonel Mountain served
as Adjutant-General to the army under Lord Gough in
China, and was very severely wounded during that ser-
vice. On his return to India he was appointed Ad-
jutant-General to her Majesty's Forces serving there,
and on the breaking out of the war in the Punjaub
had the command of a brigade, with which he
served with so much distinction at the battles of Chilian-
wallah and Gujerat that, at the termination of the last
battle, he was promoted to the command of a division
under General Sir Walter Gilbert, and sent by him in
immediate pursuit of the enemy. A t the conclusion of
the war he resumed his appointment of Adjutant-Gene-
ral. Colonel Mountain, it may truly be said, earned
distinction wherever he was, whether in camp, quarters,
or the field, being alike distinguished for gentleness,
assiduity in the performance of his duties, and gallantry,
and he has died, a sad loss to the service as a Christian
and as a soldier. Colonel Mountain was a son of the late
and brother of the present Bishop of Quebec.