The Sun.
London, England, 1831-01-08 00:00:00

BIRMINGHAM PETITION.

TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY.
The humble Petition of the Council of the Birmingham
Political Union.

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SIRE,-We, your Majesty's sincerely dutiful and loyal
subjects, the Council of the Birmingham Political Union,
beg leave humbly to approach your Majesty with our
earnest prayers and humble representations on behalf of
those unfortunate men, our fellow-subjects, who have lately
been convicted under special commissions, of acts of incen-
diarism, and of riotous and illegal proceedings, and also on
behalf of those other unfortunate men who are about to
take their trials for similar offences.
It is unquesf onable that those unhappy individuals have
been goaded into such desperate proceedings, under the as made
excitement and phrenzy produced by a long course of un- es also s
paralleled sufferings and privation., arising out of cruel
and oppressive laws, sonic of which have been expressly' "ulteti gi
intended to enhance the price of bread, and others 01 '5 genet.;
which have been equally calculated to beat down the price Le chute'
of labour. `note
Under the pressure of these laws, and of others equal!! ,‘e tent.;
unwise and disastrous, the unhappy subjects of your Ms- "itch is
jesty have for years scarcely been able to endure their un- UrUing ;
exampled sufferings. Great numbers of them have been
e'red, it
tossed from difficulty to difficulty, and from a state are' e been
carious and ill-rewarded, employment to a state of utter 'Nerb e
destitution. They have struggled on for year after years 11)1" to
under the influence of hope, constantly disappointed and .140 h b
constantly diminishing, until at last the:reiterated declare.- 15 the e,
tions of ycur Majesty's late Ministers—first, that no dig- !'taine
."
tress existed, and then, that no relief could be afforded, lor of t
have positively driven them to despair ci
We respectfully submit to your Majesty, that your lqa"
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jesty's present Ministers have publicly acknowledged that
,",oleor
the wrongs, difficulties, and distresses of your Majestys ' "r.
faithful and loyal people have been occasioned by the mid' '41'1%,
administration of public affairs, and that such distress°, latlib
have tended much to produce guilt and misconduct; A"
we cannot but lament that these great truths have not been We
sufficiently borne in mind by your Majesty's Ministers, in Itoughan'
have
tai;(,l;oevipactrttidein,daign
think,
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tsa, entphiwylf which
i theyn
eceivelt
nion that the extreme penalty of the law ought not to be neigh
thought.
wre fitart:
opfur,spoie.. ig his
t convicted
in ad
administering
isougch a
ocyi rcptoi tinisathannicce:t 0 A
whatever, due regard should be had to the dubitable cba; tterea,}l(
racter of evidence, produced by the powerful influence "` ay tt.",‘'
large pecuniary rewards, which may tempt one man re tibubtr?",
commit perjury, and another to seduce his neighbour "ire ationt
crime ; for, without this precaution, it is certain that, ti"-
der such circumstances, no inan'a life can be secure
Majesty l "cve thereforelviliim ghruaieniboliy, andlypleased ienaoses,ti earnestlypa:easy, thatre. boa l"1
pr:s'oestiwer seeipter: tl
tations into your Royal consideration; and, following the f the tl
dictates of your own merciful and benevolent heart, to e%" re 5,."13
° ere
a
tend the Royal clemency to all the unfortunate men s,i ,f
have been, or who may be convicted under the aforeaw"