The Sun.
London, England, 1867-06-28 00:00:00

what I had done; the leaves could not speak. I also working at the trade that don't work in her-
tore out the leaves at my own house and burnt mony with us, for they don't pay to the trade. But
them. Mr. Bagshaw says we must stop it and very quick.
he as suggested a plan which i think will suckseed
Further examined the witness said Stanley found
well that is to blow up your place at Abbeydale iu-
fault when the books came into his possession be- sted of Blowing up the place with the gunpowder so
cause they were mutilated. He thought Stanley as it cannot be detected as a trade outrage. He
had not given his evidence so straightforwardly as says every man out to have £2 10s. that as a union
he should have done. if not it is their own fault he says you out to give
In answer to further questions witness admitted a your men a price that will earn that amount andlive in smaller mansions than you do the Bargain is
case of rattening when a band was paid for by the made to fire your place if you do not give the prise
society. It had also, he said, been attributed to the and get shut of the boys and men that Bore and
society men that they had trodden upon bricks be- I lap up i tells you the men is paid and the job will be
same man that took your bands and
fore they became hardened, and that they had put
done try the
pins and needles into clay which had been prepared i i threw them into the dam. Mr. Bagshaw says he
not the fork grinders their prise which they are now
for the making of bricks. The effect of this would
paving, and he says he can get us ours if we will
be that the men who worked up the clay would have i stick to him and do as he tells us. we are sure to
their hands destroyed. He had heard of one non- win the victory. i think Mr. Bagshaw is worthy
society man having been shot at, but he had never of all prase for what he as done in Sheffield for the
working men that belong the union. i hope this
heard of gunpowder being placed among a stack of
will be a sufficient warning to you to comply with
bricks. About seven or eight years ago a Mr.
the trade and save your place from being burned
Robinson, whose men were not paying to the Union, I down." Signed by two double crosses.
had a can of powder thrown at his window, and he I afterwards saw Bagshaw, and he denied all know-
charged the Union with having instigated that out- ledge of the letter. Eventually, a revised list of
rage. Since he had been secretary he had set his prices was agreed to, and the dispute settled. The
face against rattening and all kinds of outrages. winter after I was shot at I carried a revolver,
The witness Stanley was recalled, and was told but I have not since. I sleep with loaded fire-
by Mr. Overend that there was no doubt he had arms in my room. After I was fired at I gave no
committed perjury. The Examiners scarcely knew information to the police, as I was afraid of the
whether they were discharging their duty in not consequences that might ensue to myself if inquiries
ordering him to be prosecuted. They, however, were made. If a man leaves my service without
had obtained the information they desired, and as notice, or for any other reason, I consider it best to
their object was not to punish, but to obtain infer- take no notice of it, as we are thoroughly cowed
mation, he would be allowed to leave the court. He down by the Unions. I do not think one dispute
had very much disgraced himself. in 50 for which there is a legal remedy comes before
Mr. Cutts, secretary to the Filesmiths' Union, our magistrates, as we consider such a course would
was recalled, and was examined with reference to be useless.
some entries in the executive committee's book. He Mr. Barstow—Do you mean to say that the
admitted that all the entries between February and Sheffield manufacturers are such a lot of spiritless
June, 1865, were written at the same time. He creatures that they submit to all these things quietly
was ill during those months, and when he recovered like a lot of sheep ? We do. We cannot help our-
he made all the entries at one time. From a similar
cause about two months' entries in the'present year
were made at the same time. He denied that any
other entries had been copied.

selves.
Mr. Barstow—Then, all I can say is you have
deserved what you got.
Witness—We have to submit to such tyrannical
dictation ou the part of the Unions that we are glad
to settle disputes as best we can. In cases of
rattening I have felt it to be useless to go to the
police.
At the suggestion of Mr. Sugg, Mr. Barstow
asked witness why he connected the shooting at
himself with the Union, and why it might not have
been an attack by robbers.
Witness replied that had the attack been by
robbers they would have come to him when he was
lying unconscious in his gig. Witness added--
Needham confessed to me a few days after he was
convicted. I made some inquiries about Needham
a few days before I was shot at. The men of whom
I inquired were known to Thompson. I never
charged Thompson after I was shot at with being
concerned in it. I gave no notice that I should not
take proceedings against him. I was never shot at
.again. I have lately learnt that Needham went to
America immediately after I was shot at. The mall
with whom he lodged told me he went away at the
end of 1862. I have no proof that Needham was
in communication with Thompson at this time. I
am told, however, that Needham showed a large
sum of money before he went to America.
The Court adjourned until Friday morning.

Mr. Overend said it was a remarkable fact that
there was a gloss upon the ink, as if the entries bad
only been written a short time ago, and all at the
same time.

Witness accounted for that by saying that he used
a particular kind of ink which retained its gloss six
or seven years afterwards. In proof of this he de-
sired the examiners to look at some entries made
six or seven years ago; Mr. Overend, after examin-
ing the entries, said he was bound to say witness was
correct. He denied that the union ever paid the
expenses of a man named Owen to Newburn, Owen
at the time being suspected of having committed an
outrage. He also denied that the society paid the
expenses of Owen back to Sheffield when the out-
rages bad been somewhat hushed up.
Thomas Roberts, secretary to the Table Blade
Grinders' Union, admitted that rattening had been
resorted to in his trade in extreme cases. It was not
of common occurrence. He was not aware that any
outrage had been committed or threatening letter
sent. There were nearly 500 members in the Union,
and the average number on the box, extending over
a period of five years, would be about 50. There
were more now, as trade was bad. A good workman
would earn £2 per week, and a man and a boy £3
per week. Where no union existed a man had to do
£2 worth of work for £l. Most of the employers
were in a small way of business, and they took ad-
vantage of the men. The rules of the Union allowed
a man to have two apprentices. Rattening he be-
lieved would at once cease if the Union could legally
recover contributions from the members.
Edwin Sykes, scissor manufacturer, said that in
1865 he was asked to find employment for a lad
named Leadbeater, who was au apprentice to another
manufacturer, as he had no work for him. One day
Holmshaw, secretary to the Union, came to his shop
and threatened to strap the lad if he did not at once
go home. The lad ran off and witness saw him no
more. The following Monday when Holmshaw called
for his contribution he refused to pay it, saying
he would have nothing more to do with the Union.
Holmshaw said they would make him pay. Soon
after all his bands were rattened, and subsequently,
when he persisted in employing a lad named Prior,
who had not been apprenticed to the trade, his shop
was broken into, and tools of the value of £25 were
destroyed.
Mr. Overend—Have you ever rattened ?—Yes ;
but it is many years ago. One morning I was rat-
tened, and the next I rattened my neighbour out of

revenge.
Mr. Overend—Have you not quarrelled with
your nephew ?—Yes ; he robbed me of thousands,
and I turned him out. The rattenings I have re-
ferred to were not done by him.
Joshua Tyzack, member of the firm of Tyzack
and Sous, manufacturers of saws, files, and steels,
was next called, and said—We employ about 250
men, and have been involved in many disputes
with the unions. We have been obliged to comply
with the wishes of the union or we must have re-
tired from the trade. In January, 1856, we were
employing men who were obnoxious to the union,
and one of the places in which they worked was
blown up. A man named Needham was convicted
of the offence, and sentenced to four years' penal
servitude. I had an interview with Needham in
prison, and from what I learned from him I looked
somewhat anxiously for his return. This became
known, and one evening in 1862, after Needham
had come out of prison, as I was driving past a
small plantation towards home in my gig I heard a
shot fired. That was immediately followed by a
second, and on my looking round I saw the flash of
a third shot. The bullet fired on the third occasion
passed through the brim of my hat, brushing my
hair. I dropped down in my gig from excitement.
I believe both from the number and nature of the
reports the shots were fired from a revolver. As
soon as I recovered consciousness I got on the seat,
struck the horse, which had been standing, and im-
mediately two more shots were fired at me in quick
succession, but neither of them struck me. It was
a very fine night, and I believe the shots were fired
from behind an old wall. The only reason I can
asssign for this attempt on my life was because I
bad been making active inquiries after Needham.
I believe since the appointment of the Commission
Needham has gone to America. At the interview
I had with him in prison, he told me that Michael
Thompson, secretary to the Scythe Grinders'
Union, had given him £lO to blow up the works at
Dronfield. I was after Needham for the sake of
his evidence, as I wanted to prosecute Thompson.
This fact became known, and to that I attribute
the attempt on my life. I had no quarrel with any
one at the time. I have a strong suspicion that
Thompson knew I was inquiring for Needham. I
have also received several threatening letters, but I
believe only one has been preserved. The letters
stated that if we gave machine knives to others
than grinders we might expect to be blown up.
We have been rattened several times and our bel-
lows have been destroyed. Once 14 of our men
were taken out by the union—we having received
no notice—because machine knives had been given
to the scythe grinders. We attended a meeting of
the men, and a number of most arbitrary conditions
were submitted to us as the terms upon which our
men would be allowed to resume work. Most of
the conditions were modified and the dispute was
settled. At the same meeting we were asked
whether we had not obtained the assistance of a
neighbouring manufacturer, Mr. Horne—our men
being out—to enable us to execute an order. We
admitted we had done so, awl the same night Mr.
llorne's premises were entered and a quantity of
tools and other property were destroyed. (Mother
occasions when our scythe finishers have been in ar-
rears with their natty our shops have been broken
open and the tools taken. Sometimes the tools have
been restored and sometimes not. At the beginning
of the present year the scythe grinders asked for an
advance of wages, and 1 refused to concede their
demands. On the 14th of February I received the
following letter :--
" Sir,—You say you will not pay the price asked
for, but you will 'ave to pay and glad you can. Mr.
Charles Bagshaw says he can make you pay any
price we 'ave a mind to ask for. 11Ir. 13agshaw says
you are robbing your men of their rites for not let-
ting'em 'ave their own apprentices. lie says you are
ruining the trade for 'aveing so many lads in your
firm, instead of your men having them, and men