The Sun.
London, England, 1812-02-15 00:00:00

NOTTINGHAM RIOTS.

Mr. RYDER said he, rose to move for leave to
bring in a Bill on an occasion well deserving the at-
tention of the Legis!ature. -He had a painful deity to
discharge, in adverting to circumstances which had
lately taken place in Nottingham and the neighbour-
ing counties, disgraceful to the chat acter of the coon..
try. He had to assure the House, .tlyit the hopes
which he entertained of their cessation were realizt.d,
though dirt in such a manner as to extinguish the fear
of their breaking out again. He telt himself bound
.to bring the subject before the House,. where there
were so marry Gentlemen competent to decide upon
it, and to recommend the best means of checking such
disturbances. It was notorious to the House and to
the Country, that the dwellings of individuals were
entered by armed men, who destroyed varieties of
machinery, and carried on a system of riot bordering
upon insurrection, in a manner which never betel&
had disgraced the history of this country. The first
intimation which Government had of their proceed-
ings was on the 14th of November, when applicatiort
was made to it by the High Sheriff-and Magistrates
of Nottingbath for militat y assistance. A troop of dia..
goons was ordered to proceed to that place, in con..
sequence. Things Mimediately became quieter, heit
on the 27th the scene was changed again, and the
Lord Lieutenant of the county signified his appre-
hensions that the same disposition' was likely to ex-
tend to the counties of Leicester and Derby. From
the 14th of November to the 19th of December, be-
tween 800 and 900 cavalry and 10110 infantry, were
ordered into Nottingham; a greater force than had
ever been employed on a similar occasion. In the
latter end of December the prospect again became-
more favourable, an,l there was reason to suppose'.
that, partly from the military force, arid partly.
from a better system of police, the rioters were sup-
pressed ; but again they broke out, and two additi-
onal regiments were sent to the assistance of the :11i.
finny ford. He wished the House tip understand
that imiwArt, •

applied for. On the '23J of January, he received the
depositions of witnesses, taken in that place, and the
objeel was to lay them be:ore the Attorney-Gene-
ral. preearatore.to sending down a coneeission to try
such persees as might he taken. He had dispatched
Mr. Conan', an intelligent Megistrate,, to ascertain.
the best way of proceednig, and procure ail the
iu-
formati-tn he could. •The next step resolved upon
was; to recommend to his Royal Highness, to issue
a Proclamation, offeting a reward for the aepre-
heosioo and pro,ereition of sue as were concerned in
those riots.
.fie :allowed that it was a doubtful, step,:
and such as never before was resortedto, but tie con-
ceived, was fully justified by the urgency 01 the
-case. His :view al present was not. to answer
charges brought against the Government, but to ex-
plain all the steps Viet had been .tried befoi-e be pro-
eeede.l to the extremity intended by his inoton.—
The progress of those disrurbances.was most extraor-
chsty, no: withrtardieg the assistance that had been
given. Thev,arese between the workmen and the
manufaaurers ; the machines they destroyed were
not the property of the 'persons in whose houses
the, were, but, were hired out by she manufacturers,
or by persons who made a sort of trade of hiring
them. He believed ii might have been the cases
that some of_ the owners t,l the house, in whit!)
they were kept were accomplices, which would ac-
• count for the circumstence of- so little information
bins obtained, and so few apprehensions effected.
The Wholo system WAS carried on with the greatest
*.O recy and Management In, many instances the
machinery was btoken without any noise, when the
military were in sight, and in. one instance when.
the-, were within a hundred yards of the Tremises.
It happened at another time, that five or six persons
• were pieced outside a village to prevent. all ingress
stet egt e4s, while thirty of the party destroyed the
frames in the pfice, and escaped without the know-
ledge of any person. Thor acts required legislative
inierterence. One of the causes to which-tae heard
them asciibed, was the great employment afforded
it the period of tee speculations to South America,
and the subsequent fallieg off, N;hictt, about two
years ago, produced great distress, aided since by the
interruption of trade, it had produced those. conse-
cu nces. Whatever ground of complaint the work-
men might have against their employers, it was
impoisibk to couotenanae such a manner of redress,
by which whole families wert-edriven to ruin, and
which threatened io dr4vee the manuffeturers from
the county of Nottingham. The may question was,
whether it was not right to attempt a legislative
ena&tnent ? By the 28th of the King, the breaking.
of frames was made a simple felony punishable with
transportation. His intention was to make it capi-,
tal. , He was no friend to the increase of capital
punishment, but property must bts protected, He
did not rest iris proposition on the frequency of the
offence, or the difficulty of the detection, but on the
ttecessi'y of keeeing down the spirit. He quoted
the opinioo of Sir Matthew Hales, to shew that
when otieoces became enormous, and dangerous to
the Srate, they should be punished with death :
and stated, that frein six to ten' thousand pout's
worth of property was destroyed by those riotous
individuals. There was another measure which he
should introduce, to enable the Lcrd Lieutenant of
the county and five Justices to call a General or
Spetaial Sessions, in tittles of Adisturbance, for the
perpote of swearing in Constables and petty Coo-
tnahles, and chusing from persons of about twenty-.
five years of age, a sufficient number to establish
water and ward. He might be told that some of
this was law already, but it was law which was fall-
en into ...isuse, anu stone of the pl °visions would
be found to be new. When he stated that he .was
sanguine in his expe4.latioris front it, lie went upon
the representations of those. who were likely to forur
a judgment. If it had the effeit of establishing
watch and ward, the disturbances would be nut -an
end to. The Right Honourable Gentleman then
moved for leave to bring in a lid, for the more ex-
emplary punishment 'of .persons guilty of frame-
breaking.
Colonel ETRE (Member for Nottinghamshire) se-
cooded the motion of the Right Hou. Gentleman,
trssured as he was by most of the judicial persons in
toe county of Nottingham, that it was floe only mea-
sure weich could be really serviceable. However
severe in enactment, if effeaual, it would be hu-
mane in consequence. For the very parties who
.were engaged in the' work of . destruction, while
they were injuring the property of others, were
still more seriously injuring themselves, as they an-
nihilated the means of feture occupation. Not-
withstanding every possible effeCt, tie outrages had
existed for mmy months. The Magistrates of the
county had exerted themselves to the; utmost; and
Inc must do toe Government the justice to say That
they had most readily come forward net second their
ttforts. They had acceded to every request of the
Magistracy ; they-had ordered various and consider-
able bodies of the military- to match to their aid ;
' they bad lent them the assistance of several active
and skilful Police Orlicers---but such was the exist-
ing state of the case, that unless the offenders were
deieeted in the very a6t, it was UtXt to impossible
to apprehend them. _ _ _

Mt:. J. Smrris conceived the d:racabautes if not
olpo.ed, would be most dangerous. rte did not
agree with the Right Hon. Gentleman that they
arose in consequence of the men being- unemployed.
One of the great etuses for comphint was toe mode
itt which the misguided men were paid, and be-
cause they did not receive.wages :adequate, as they
buprposed, to their support. The mode of payment
by the masters, was, in some cases, by linen-dra-
ray goo is, shoes, iron, and, provisions of various
stirs, which they estimated in value at much less
than the twenty shillings to which they might be
emiiled. Other causes were to be found, as the
manuerot measuring out the work, and there were
cases in which individual inanuladurers oppressed
the workmen. If these combinations were not put
an end to, considerable dangers might arise. With
respect to the penalty of death, he thought the dif-
ficulties of conviction would be increased, if the Le-
gislature were to impose so capital a punishment for
offences of the kind no,v alluded to. The Hon..
G,-unleman expressed his thanks to the Right Hon.
Gentleman for the teal, ability, and solicitude which
he had shewn to preserve the peace of the town
and county of Nottingham. The Magistrates of
the town had exerted themselves with a degree of
vigour and energy which refieded on them great

credit ; and tic inhabitants had also contributed
their assi,aance to quell the spirit of riot which had
SO 01111130 y tnsl if steel ;ti-if in the town, contain-
ing about forty thousand persons; which town, he
was flee to confess, wasin 0 state oft he rkepest dis-
tress. Indeed never saw in any town so lunch
of distress an miJery. With such a p.,pidation,
the exertions 01 the-Ma..jsracy had kept the public
peace, and it -was unparalleled that they had so
done. • The 'breaking of flames :was not done by
large mobs, hut' -by t.enty or thirty, so,octim,s
thrett or tirtr, WllO went at th- dead of eight to
commit these kittlawful acts, and theieby,ese ip:td the
utmost rigilat;ce. The interposition of the Legisla-
ture hecAme highly necessary.
Mr. C-...•W,Y a NS thought ingoiry ought to precede
the itnerteren,e of the Legisl we, and was there-
fore disposed to Meter a t'ontmiuee, he!ore the
motion for leave to biing in t!.e 13JI was agreed to.
Inquiry uoul.l stew the misguided men that the
eye. of the Legislature was not remote t front them ;
and if they hai grievances to complain of, those
grievances would be redressed. Before he could
consent to make new enakciment4 of a penal na-
ttne, .._be must tie satisfied the present Statutes were
instifficient to the purposes for which they were
framed.

Mr. FRANKLAND adverted to the records of Eli-
zabeth, in reference to the statute upon the subjed,'
and panegyrisrd the,ahi'ines of &icon and Raleigh,
Members of the Legislature, which passed the sta-
tute,, under circumstances not di.similar with- the
present state of the county. He wished it to be re 7
colleCted, that the House was called upon not to
make laws for the presivation of the property of
individuals merely-, but for the general security of
the State. The necessity of Legislative. interference
was manifest ; because, with all the assidui).y and
vigilance of the Magiitracy, they had not been able
to put sclfitwn the disturbers of the peace entirely:
Mr. ECK was against'deiay. The depredations
comp'ained of were -doue by armed persons, That
circumstance would, in hs opinion, tot dly _ super-
sede the necessity of inquiry. Besides; it had spread
through some of the midland counties.
Mr. SHERIDAN was'relliciant to originate bills
which went to extend the Penal Cude without pre-
vious inquiry. It must be recollected that he
weeches of Gentlemen would go f:r nothing ; but
it a Cooimittee was appointed, and _they made a
report recommending the extension, then the House
would have sufficient
.autliority on which to act.—
He conceived there was great blame -somewhere in
permitting the di'siurbancel to arrive at such height.
Mr. H. MARTIN, as a magistrate of the county
of Leicester, declared, that every exertion. had
been used to put down the disturbances within
the county, where riot a single frame 'had been
broken. He hoped some infornia,ion would be laid
on the table to justify the extension of capital pu-
nishments.

Mr. BABtNoToN was perfealy convinced, what-
ever was their .object, that the system of breaking
the law was prevalent, and wai extiqiding through
some of the other counties. He was disposed to
vote for the appointment of a Committee to ii quire
into the fads, the report of which might soon be
made. It might be necessary_ to pass an Ad of the
nature now proposed, but then he thought it should
only be a temporary one, to meet evils vthich,
only were of a temporary nature. had no ob-
jection to the second Bill, even without the torn of
. _ .

The CHANCELLOR Of the EXCHEQURR imagined
there could be no objeetion to the Bill as proposed
by Los Right Hon. Friend, for a watch and ward,
with an it,struBiou to the C;mmittee to extend the
provisions of it to such parts as to
,them should
appear most proper and ❑ecessary. No Gentleman
had suggested any doubt of the existence of the
evil complained of, thereThre, when it was proposed
to have a Committee to inquire, he thought it was
a proposition which was not necessary to be enter-
tained. No praaical good could be derived from
the appointment of a Committee. He agreed with
the Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Babington) that the Bill
' should be of a temporary nature, and that the
House was not called upon to legi,late for posterity.
With respect to the illdstrious names mentioned by
.his Honourable Ftiend (Mr. Frankland), he much
doubted whether, when those great men legislated,
there was that general notoriety of fads which sub-
sequent times afforded. The objeas of the present
measure would be to• correct the evils and to pro-
duce that state of tranquility •so much desired.
With resped to what had been stated by an Hon.
Gentleman as to the mode of payment to the work-
men in goods, he •thought serious inconvenience
would accrue if the Legislature was to interfere.
Where there was distress apparent, it would be the
most unjust way to prescribe by law to the mann-
faaurer the mode of payment, which would have
the etrea of inducing them not to engage on any
terms.

Mr. WHITBREAD contended, that it would be
unjust to entertain the Bills without a previors in-
quiry. He could not Con,ent to multiply the. penal
statutes; and the question was,. whether the laws
already in force were not sufficient to prevent the
crime ? It waS not a very light matter to enact the
penalty of death, and if a Committee wf4.4 proposed,
he should readily concur in that motion. There
was blame originally attaching to the department
which should have taken cognizance of the riots.
He was the first to call the attention of Parliament
to the subject. He was happy now to add his tes-
timony of applause to the conduet of the Bight
aniourable Secretary, who had done his duty in a
most exemplary manner. It was also a jutice due
to the Magistrates to say, they had done their duty
in the same manner. They had cured the evil in
the town.; but• out of town there were not the
same facilities for vigilance, and there might be
the necessity for a watch and ward in the Coun-
ty. He ag:eed with those who thought the laws
referred to of Elizabeth, were a reproach to the
Statute Book.

HERBERT, before he could consent to add to
the number of capital punishments, must, be con-
vinced that the existing laws were insufficient. Of
this there was as yet no proof, as there bad been no
trial on the subject. An Hon. Member had stated,
in the course of the evening, that these riots which
have extended themselves to Leicestershire,- ,liad
been suppressed by the a6tivity of the Magistrates.
He wished the House to know why the M3gis-