The Sun.
London, England, 1840-04-16 00:00:00

/ THE THE PEOPLE OF ENGLAND.
L FELLOW COUNTRYMEN,
I
h Long ere you receive this Address, the doleful tidings will
aY° reached you that FROST, WILLIAMS, and JONES
save been transported : that they have been transported con-
LtliaerZ to the Law of England is manifest and undeniable ; but that
lvereaiv,backed by the voice of millions, will in the end triumph
tyranny,
aaubt ; an , Persecution andprejudiee, no true Englishman can
that you . and we are fully 'persuaded, by evidences innumerable,
y
have already determined to adopt every constitutional
`Vas to promote and accomplish this object. e
full
estimate the immense value of Trial by Jury ; it is
(41 of the most important of our birthrights ; but in proportion
taintastin'Por.tance should the purity of its operation be main-
It e", arid fear and prejudice be removed from the sacred box.
seewa-aliet so in the case of the Welsh Martyrs, nay, it would
thaT s though eve ry engine had studiously been pet in motion
_.7 +as calculated to produce a strong bias in the public m;nd
agaTe ist them.
.. e
are well acquainted with the early efforts of the public
r; 5. to misrepresent their conduct, to calumniate their charac-
..tPlk and to excite fear and prejudice in the minds of that por-
l°,.ef the community from which jurors are usually chosen.
tiesoil are also aware that under sanction of the local authori-
it, and before
closed,befor
eth e Trials had taken place, the shops of New-
and thanksgivings were offered up in the
:arches that certain alleged designs had been frustrated, which
, evre thus taken for granted, but which were never proved to
___44l.l)et been entertained. This step, however well intended, or
lur_' bjeetionable in other respects. was inevitably calculated to
rfadttee strong feelings in the locality, and to incense the ge-
"2-1s prejudice against tho prisoners.
0,3_, if these things were not enough, a miniAter of God, who
to ”at to have been the messenger of peace and charity, seems
„,..,n,ve thought it consistent with hiss a.cred duty to make his
rileilt the vehicle for alarming the fears of that class from which
juin Jury Was about to be selected, and fsr confirming the ex-
ak_il prejudice already so deeply rooted and injurious, and
it7l7: oh, shame e
the Trial ;to say ! the
the spot was that where t time chosen for this disphe Tr al
was
:.....:41edely
bolautttobekir
take place, and, the audience were those who were
ea at to tr
Had I,y the Prisoners.
twe et a Special Commission been harshly appointed to in-
rre with the usual course of law, and had the prisoners been
elyiitted to remain until the regular Assizes, there is reason to
riteve that the alarm would have subsided—that reason would
CoTuepassurned its -power, and that much of the undue prejudice
rent passr.d away ; for Already has a Petition been pre-
aTwi ' signed. 'by a large portion of the inhabitants of Newport,
ia_ :is the false impressions under which they at that time
jel, arid praying for the pardon of the Prisoners.
whose "Q -., these eircumstancei that the Lord Chief Justice,
(whi.,°'-ind was. above the local prejudice, delivered h is charge
azt,, ‘;', was in strict conformity with the evidence) decidedly
it_,, indisputably in favour of an acquittal. Have we not then
117.':.1e reason to question the ustice of those verdicts which the
•v•ries returned in the case of the Welsh Martyrs, notwith-
'landing our devotedness to that palladium of our rights? f But,Tellovr-countrymen we have other 'and even stronger
ground of appeal against the' transportation of these men . We
E: authorised, by the solemn decision of six of the Judges of
:,gland, including a majority of the Special Comm ssion,
".!o h, in this ease, ought to be decisive—we have their irre-
sistible and positive authority, after mature deliberatioin, for
!I Varing that the trials were contrary to the law of the land—
ta t the convictions were illegal, and that the whole of the
Eroeeedings were essentially null and void from the beginning.
whole
other Judges, who, with the six, form a majority of the
Bench, also decided that the Crown had not complied
with the law; but the three alleged that the prisoners had
it
objected at the right time. Now we respectfully ask, is
fair and just that tine prisoners should suffer punishment
'under a convictions ersentially bad, for not knowing the precise
,oment at whi,;ss their objection should be urged, when the
present
tjh(ledges thems sects are at issue with each. other, and. even up to
tuul in dos ?
dyne have allowed the question to remain unsettled
h.ifs7P corn to the records of the trial, we find that when
ttso-r,—.' Ansel for the defence first attempted to urge the objec-
' ess was stopped by the Attorney-General, on the ground
Pot Oiat he was too late, but that he was too soon—that the
isvosaer time for urging it had not then arrived, _which dictum
1 'the Attorney-General was assented to and ruled by the pre-
siding,,, Judges.
~,.Ih.ese, Fellow-countrymen, we submit are reasons wich im-
dewitieirmine whether,
r-rat'valy call for the pardon of these men; it is for you to
with persevering and effective energy, you
continue your exertions until the authority of the law be
establish* and the prisoners, as an act of justice, be restored
to their families.
We ate well aware that you have done much—we know
that retitiOnS to the Queen, the Lords, and the Commons,
s".‘aatl by at 1. ast six hundred thousand persons, have
?Already been presented, and we had hopes that during the
rryful ceremony of the marriage of our Queen, she would
have been advised to listen to the prayers of her people; she
would doubtless have been pleased, had such advice been given,
to have dried up the tears of the wives and children of the un-
happy prisoners—to have established the sovereignty of the
laws of the realm, and to have made her wedding-day the day
of liberty to those whom the law had not condemned. Alas,
it has not been so; our hopes are blighted, the law has not
been vindicated, the prayers of the people have not been re-
spected, and justice and mercy have not prevailed.
What, then, Fellow-countrymen, can we suggest, or what
tan you de? The cause of these Martyrs demands your atten-
tion, and we solemnly appeal to you on their behalf. We are
assured that Lord John Russell has declared, " they were seut
away to ge.c rid of the excitement in their favour." Shall the
" exciteir.ent" cease whilst they are suffering in defiance of the
law ? ;hall it cease before the law is vindicated ? We are
sure 0-At your ready and decided answer will be, No ! Justice
must be established ; the law must be vindicated, and Frost,
„,, w Aliases, and Jones must be recalled!
11, then, Fellow-countrymen, it be your determination to
secure these objects, it is necessary that unanimity should pre-
vail, and that system and arrangement should mark every
future proceeding. 'We, therefore, respectfully suggest the
following recommendations for your calm and deliberate consi-
deration, and if you approve of them, we feel assured that you
will instantly and universally adopt them :
. Let Associations be formed in every village, town, and
hamlet.
2' APlesint regular and periodical meetings of those Asso-
, illations.
. :Establish Weekly Penny Subscriptions.
Convene public meetings to petition Parliament for the
,im-
mediate Fecal of the Welsh Martyrs.
a. Let the people of every district send their petitions to their
_ own Member for presentation.
6. Let each Association keep up a regular communication with
their representatives, and urge them to advocate with zeal
the prayers of the petitioners.
.et the Association make arrangements successfully to
demand of every candidate at the next general election,
that he will, if returned to Parliament, unceasingly en-
deavour to effect the liberation of the Welsh Martyrs.
8. Let the people of every city, borough, and county, be uni-
versally informed that en the next nomination-day, a show
of hands will be taken in reference to the Welsh martyrs;
and, that no mistake may be made during the hurry of the
proceedings, take care to have large boards in readiness
with the following words written in legible characters,
" hold up your hands for the release and return of the
Welsh martyrs." Thus the Government will understand
the wishes of the people upon this question.
9. Conclude the business ofevery public meeting held for what-
ever purpose with a resolution in favour of the law and the
Welsh -Martyrs.
And now, Fellow-countrymen, to your work. Let no man
say he is too insignificant for the labour of mercy and justice ;
the cause will sanctify the instruments, and the object to be
attained will speedily produce assistance. Let the tears of
the forsaken wives, the sufferings of the defenceless ahildren,
be an additional stimulant, if an additional stimulant be
wanting.
BE PEACEFUL, BE UNITED, BE ENERGETIC ! .

7- I:,

And may the God of Justice crown your efforts with success !
G. ROGERS, Chairman.
A. DYSON, Secretary.
Arundel Coffee-house, Strand, March 17, 1840.
P. S.—The Committee will be happy to receive communica-
tions, addressed to Mr. G. Rogers, ss, High-street, St. Giles's,
sr to Mr. A. Dyson, Arundel Coffee-house.