The Sun.
London, England, 1840-07-15 00:00:00

It having been understood that the Lecturer was in
connection with the great and organized agitation now
going oa in England for procuring a repeal of these laws
a very laree number of persons was attracted to the
place of meeting, and hand-bills being plentifully circu-
lated amongst the population in the neighbourhoOd,
added to the excitement and interest which prevailed.
At a little after seven o'clock the Lecturer com-
menced his address, and spoke nearly to the following
purport :
Friends, brethren, and fellow-countrymen, we have
met here this evening on a most important subject—
important as it regards the well-being of society, and
the labouring classes in particular. My friends, this is
no party political question ; it is not a question dis-
putable between either Whigs or Tories as to which
shall hold the reins of power ; it is not a question as-
what line of distinction in the p:ivileges of the con-
stitution shall be drawn between one portion of the
community and the other, but it is a question disputable
between millions of God's creatures, and the aristocracy
of the land. My friends, in addressing you this (even-
ing,.it is my intention to adhere to that rule that [have
always invariably followed in my public career of lectur-
ing on this subject, to eubmit my arguments to the or-
deal of public discussion, arid as the only means that we
have in our power of arriving at just and rational conclu-
sions on this or any other subj •ct is, to discuss the merits
or demerits of the position we have undertaken to de-
fend, I am, therefore, willing to enter into discussion with
Any• individual who may question the arguments that I
may advance ; for I can assure you that, although I
come forth to instruct my countrymen on this all-impor-
tant question, I am likewise open to instruction, and
Shall be always willing to receive the truth, let it ema-
nate from what quarter, or under what aspect it may.
The Lecturer went on to trace the pernicious effects of
the Corn-laws on the best interests of Ireland, when he
was interrupted by the Mayor, and the following con-
versation took place :
His Worship—This is an illegal meeting.
Lecturer—Sir, 1 think this is no meeting at all ; it
is only a lee are. ,
His Worship—You have a great many people here.
Lecturer Yes, your Worship, and I think they
are very attentive to the lecture.
His Worship—This is an illegal meeting ; you have
broken the law, and I must stop you.
L.!.eturer—May it please your Worship, if I have
broken the law I am willing to submit to any punish-
ment that law may inflict upon me ; but, may it please
your Worship, on what point of law have I infringed,
or in what manner has this meeting become illegal?
Another Gentleman—You have told the people you
will not appeal to their passions, and your placard ap.
peals to their passions.
Lecturer—Pray, Sir, what part of the placard is
inflammatory ?
His Worship—Sir, I must put you down ; take
you into custody.
Another Gentleman—He ought to have been ar-
rested.
A Voice behind the Lecturer—Who is he ? A
stranger come here to delude the people ?
At this period the meeting was in a complete up-
roar ; the Mayor and Sheriffs got into the box with
the Lecturer ; the shouting was tremendous—" You're
welcome home, Mr. Finnigan"—" No Corn-law"—
" Three cheers for Mr. Finnigan."
The Lecturer then waved his hand in token of
silence, and the immense body of people were hushed in a
moment. The Lecturer then told the meeting, that in

consequence. of the paragraph at the bottom of the
placard calling the meeting being declared illegal. he
could not lecture any niece that evening. His Wor-
ship having forgot the terms of the paragraph, he
(Mr. F.) thought it his duty to state the substance
'of it, and they might judge of the legality of it. The
Lecturer then commenced the paragraph—" Irishmen,
loolt'around you.; what do you behold ? A starving
population."—(Tremendous cheers, and cries of " No
Corn-laws.") He again waved his hand in token of
silence, and told them not to make the least noise until
he had finished the sentence, that his Worship might
have an opportunity of hearing it. He then read the
whole of the sentence—" Irishmen, look around you ;
what do you behold? A starving population, and ab-
sentee landlords rioting in- luxurious profusion, by the
means of -enormous rentats raised by the unhallowed id-
fluence of the iniquitous Corn-laws."—(Shouts of " No
Corn-laws.")
ifs Worship then endeavoured to get. a hearing,
but the shouts of " Go on with the Lecture," prevented
him from being heard.
-Mr. Finnigan 'begged of them to hear what his
Worship had to say, and then go home quietly.
His Worship then began—" Fellow Citizens, no man
feels more for the poor than I do. I know ycu had two
bad years, but you will have plenty of cheap potatoes in
4licimarket. -on . Saturday.—(Cries of " No thanks to
m:1'017:A41447 " No, Corn Laws ;" " Mr. Finnigan,
~Itcp,,ll:..shckicr,yott,tiqeioxh'COrk.")
gispoo,h; became' excited, ‘i Fellow Citi-
zens,"artotigst you for'
sixty-
four years ; no man has done more for you than
have ;- no man has expended more to relieve your
distress than 1.-have ; and will you believe a foreigner,
and not believe me ?—(Cries of We will,' No Corn
Laws,' Three cheers for Mr. Finnigan,')—a foreigner,
who has no sympathy for you, and if you lose your trade
,n corn, what will you do 2—(Cries of We'll get a big
loaf.)'—" Fellow Citizens, if I am compelled to put the
law in force no man will do it with more rigour than I
will ; so if you do not go away peaceably, I will disperse
you."—(Here the meeting became uproarious, and cries
of Let Mr. Finnigan go, and then we will go home?)
His Wersh;p said the young man was safe enough, upon
which Mr. Finnigan retired, and eventually bad -to
reason hard to prevent the people chairing him through
he City.
There could nut be less than '2,000 people present.

ADMINISTNATION OF JUSTICE

It is reported that the policeman who was so bru- 1
tally assaulted by a party of gentlemen (!) at Ilamp- 1
ton Wick has died of the injuries he received. The .'
course of justice in this ease will be watched with sus-
picion and vigilance by the public.
Captain Duff and Lord Waldegrave were identified
as belonging to the party which committed the outrage,
and the first admitted that he was one ; the latter de-
nied the charge, but was sworn to by one of the wit-
nesses. The bail required by the Magistrates was
100/. personal recognizanze, and one surety for each of
the prisoners for another 100/. Considering the condi-
tion of the parties, and the nature of the outrage,
these sureties were preposterously small. In the case
of Mr. Dunn, who so impertinently molests Miss
' Angela Coutts, the sureties required are 500/. per-
sonal recognizance, and two sureties for 250/. each.
We do not consider this amount of bail as excessive;
but it this was n )t too much in the case of the molesta-
tion of a lady, was 100/. personal recognizance, and 100/.
bail, enough.for the outrage on a policeman, attended
, with consequences so dangerous as a concussion of the
brain,? And be it observed, that the prisoners in the
latter case Were in. a condition to give larger bail than
Mr. Dunn. The total amount of the sureties taken
against the annoyance of Miss Burdett is 1,000/. Tue
total of the sureties taken of each of the offenders in the
case of the policeman (possibly killed) is 2001. And
this is equal justice.
For the sacrifice of a sum so small to them as 200/.
the assailants of the poor policeman can now escape
from justice, whatever may be the consequences of their
wanton and cruel outrage.
Yet verily it is said that there is not one law for the
rich and another for the pOor.—Exantiner.
[Our readers will remember the excessive bail required
in almost every case from the persons accused of scdi-
tious libel during the last two years.]

(From the Leeds Mercury.)
We regret to state that this town, so deservedly distin-
guished for the absence 9f atrocious crimes, has this week
been disgraced by a horrid murder, which, as far as the
progress yet made in the inquiry extends, is involved in
perfect mystery.
The unfortunate victim of this crime is William Rey-
nolds Rothery, about 20 years of age, a dealer in rags,
who resided alone in a house in Holbeek-lane. Ile
left his home about noon on Thursday, the 2d instant,
and sold a quantity of rags to • Mr. John Kirk, in
Meadow-lane, for which he received about 1/. 4s.
Ho was afterwards seen at the Anchor Inn, Huns-
let, about nine o'clock the same night, in company
with a young man, with whom he left, and from
that time till Wednesday morning last nothing whatever
was heard of him, when the body of a man, which after-
wards proved to be that of the deceased, was discovered in
the river Aire, near to the Monkpits Suspension Bridge,.
by some girls who were going to work shortly before six
o'clock.. The body was immediately taken out, conveyed
to the Geldard Arms, Wortley-road, and searched, but
nothing found upon it, excepting a few trifling articles,
such as a box key, a comb, &c. On examination of the
persera of the deceased, a frightful gash was discovered in
the fhrinit, of about two inches in depth and an inch and
an Nall' in width, which appeared to be caused by some
shirp instrument having been plunged into the part in a
perpendicular manner, and then worked across to the ex-
tent before described.
By whom this cold-blOoded act had been committed,
•yet remains a secret. How the deceased spout his time
Irons the night he was last seen to the discovery on Wed-
nesday, is equally a matter of mystery ; but it would ap-
pear that the crime had been perpetrated very recently
before the.latter day, as, from the opinion of the medical
man (who, however, has not yet been examined) the
body had not remained long iu the water. It may be
proper to state that his absence did not occasion any sur-
prise among his relatives, as he was accustomed to leave
home on business for three or four days together.
There were some facts elicited in the inquiry yester-
day of a very extraordinary character. About three
o'clock on Tuesday morning, Mr: John Kitching, a hair-
dresser, had occasion to leave his bed in consequence of
the illness of one of his children. The window of his bed-
room commands a distinct view of the suspension-bridge
and the bank of the river, and whilst up, he looked out,
and observed a man standing near the former place. He
did not stop to obServe him, but attended to the child. In
the course of about two minutes he again looked out, and
at the very moment saw a man on the bank of the river
(whom he took to be the same as he had observed on the
bridge), in the act of throwing what appeared to be
a very heavy substance into the water, which occasioned a
load splash. The man afterwards stooped to the ground
as if to take something up, and then ran off with great
speed towards Leeds. Mr. kitching did not mention the
circumstance to any person the following morning, as he
supposed the splash was occasioned by the throwing in of
a dog, it being u common practice for young men to repair
to the river early in the morning for the purpose of making
their dogs swim. It is singular, however, that the precise
place which Mr. Kitching subsequently pointed out as the
one where the substance was thrown in, was that where the
body was discovered. But the circumstance which occasions
the greatest surprise is the discovery of a large butcher's
knife, quite new, and a towel in a best in the house,
of the deceased. The weapon bad evidently been very
carefully washed, but the handle exhibited strong marks of
blood, and the blade appeared dimmed, though it was
difficult to say from what cause. The towel was also
marked with blood as though the knife bad been wiped
upon it. The door was found locked when the search took
place; the key has not ben discovered. No part of the fur-
niture another efnets appeared to have been disturbed.
Where the poor man was deprived of his life, whether in the
hence or at the water side, is matter of conjecture. There is
one feature in the case which would favour the supposition
that death had taken place before the body was thrown into
the water, as, according to the evidence of one of the wit-
nesses who saw him taken out, his right hand was in
his packet, so that no struggle can have taken place.
Wherever the deed may have been perpetrated, it is most
probable that plunder was the object of the murderer, as
the deceased had saved nearly 40/., but where he kept it is
not known. Such ale the features of this extraordinary
case, as givers in evidence at the inquest.
The inquiry commenced on Thursday morning at the
Geldard's Arms, before John Blackburn, Esq., Coroner,
and after viewing the body, by adjournment to the next
morning, the following evidence was adduced :
Joseph Rothery— I am a butcher, and live in Ilolbeck.
The deceased was my brother. He was a dealer in bones
and rags, and lived in a house in Hollrck, by himself. He
was twenty-one in January last. I do not know what
money he had in his possession, when he was last seen
alive. I never was in the house during his life time. 1
last saw him a week since on Monday. He was first
missing ►ast Friday. I know nothing of his death.
I do not know what furniture or other of he had.
I was on friendly terms with my brother. Ile worked
at the glue trade for two or three years, and then
came to me to learn to be a butcher, but he did not
turn his mind to it, and left me about a fortnight be-
fore getting his money. I am not aware where he
kept it. He had not a knife (a butcher's knife) like the
one now produced, when he left me. It, seems to me to
be a new one. I never saw it before. He use a very
steady man. I never knew him go to a public-house by
himself, 1 cannot mention any circumstances connected
with his death. lie has been in the habit of going from
borne for three or four days together, and therefore his
absence was ❑ot particularly noticed.
Thomas Rothery, another brother of the deceased, was
ezainieed, and stated that he never saw the knife produced
in his brother's possession, though he might have used it
to eta up his rags. The witness believed he was on good
terms with his brother Joseph.
James Watson, a potato dealer, deposed to_ the fact of
accompany ing the deceased to the warehouse of Mr. Kirk,
in Meadow-lane, about noon on Thursday, the 2d instate,
, for the purpose of selling a quantity of rags. At that time
he talked of going to America. Witness left him at Mr.
Kick's, and never saw him again alive. In answer to a
question by a Juryman Watson said he never knew that
the deceased and his brother Joseph had any differences.
Mr. John Kirk, rag merchant, Meadow-lane, proved the
fact of the deceased having sold him a quantity of rags,
on the 2d instant, and the payment fcr them, amounting
to about I/ 4s.
Mary Buckley—l live oa the Arrnley New-road. About
a quarter before six on Wednesday morning, I was going
to my work. There was a girl standing near the canal,
who called the to her, saying she believed there was a man
in the water. She shouted to some men and boys, who
came and thought it was a dog. A boy of the name of
George Austin went into the water, and with the assist-
ance of a rail the man was got out. His right hand was
in his breeches pocket, and it dropped by his side when
he was being pulled out. His -left hand was hanging
down. His trowsers were much torn.
George Austin—The boy who swam into the Rater, to
assist in getting out the body, gave similar evidence.
He did not observe the position of the man's hands at the
time.
William Heaton, a watchman, stated that he was on
the opposite side of the river when the body was taken
out. On being searched, a few trifling articles, such as
a box key, a comb, &c., were found in the pockets.
Blood issued from a wound in his throats The witness
did not hear any remarks as to the position of the hands
when taken out. The neck-handkerchief did not appear