The Sun.
London, England, 1844-07-16 00:00:00

DON, TUESDAY EVENING, JULY 16, 1844.

H. Brereton, farmer, Croesfryn, Anglesey.
R. Peters, labourer, Viney-hill, Gloucestershire.
J. Pray, quarryman, Viney-hill, Gloucestershire.
J. Catt, confectioner, Gravesend.
H. Archer, wheelwright, Brewood, Staffordshire.
I. Page, painter, Canterbury.
W. Alcock, Burton Strather, Lincolnshire.
J. Reynolds, joiner, Liverpool.
G. Mather, organist, Bronti-place, Walworth.
D. Duncombe, ooffee-house keeper, Drury-lane.
G. Attock, coach builder, Liverpool.
R. Jones, farmer, Wrexham, Denbighshire.
J. Sawyer, coffee-house keeper, Stratford, Essex.

Governments were bowel by engagements wit ge
land, to prohibit the slave trade, yet many of
them—the Governments of Spain and Brazil notoriously
--set those engagements at defiance—(Hear, hear.) In
some places they even derived revenue from the violation
of the treaty. Of one thing they must be assured, that
all the nccounts fell short of the truth.— (Hear, hear.)
Exceed it they could not ; and it was reasonable to be-
lieve that they fell short of it. Now, what were the
numbers calculated as the annual importation into the
islands and continents of America ? Mr. Vauderna, in
his able work. compiled from official documents
calculated the numbers of those annually landed at from
120,000 to 130,000. Sir Foxell Buxton, in his most
interesting and valuable work, stated the number
to be abont one hundred and firty thousand, and
whatever calculation they took,what an enormous amount
of human misery and of human crime, did that simple
statement involve. When they looked at abstract
general statements of numbers, represented by
figures on paper, the mind was apt not to
embrace, in all its details, the extent of the
fact thus ascertained.—(Hear, hear.) But let any man
consider, in his own mind, what 150,000 people were.
Let any man who had seen a large army, amounting
to 150,000 men, assembled at one time, imagine
that he saw that number assembled together on a
plain, let him consider that they were travelling fast to-
wards their doom—that that mass of human beings were
going to painful and premature death, and under every
variety of bodily and mental torture. Why
would not any man who witnessed such a sight
invoke the vengeance of Heaven upon the authors of
such an enormity ? But if any man looked only at the
number of victims actually sacrificed from the population
of Africa to the avarice and the cruelty of men, he would
not call them Christian men—but men belonging to
Christian nations ; he would be far indeed from
arriving at the truth. It was calculated, and,
he believed, not without good data, that for
every negro who had been landed, two others
had perished in the previous stages of the slave trade.
That whatever number was landed:three times :that
number had been sacrificed on the passage, and before
they reached the ship. It was well known that the
negroes did not collect in the immediate
neighbourhood in !which they were embarked.
Many were imported from a greatfdistance, hundreds of
miles. Some were taken captive in the wars. The
greater number was the result of slave hunting
or man-stealing, which prevailed over the interior of
Africa. When the time of year came round for sending
ehe slaves to the coast. some peaceful Arleen village,
whose unsuspecting inhabitants were buried in that
repose which Nature kindly bestows on man to fit
him for the useful occupations and innocent enjoyments
of the succeeding day—that village in the dead of night
was surrounded by armed ruffians, the population were
roused from their sleep by the flames which enveloped
their dwellings, and endeavoured to escape, some
by flight, some by resistance, but all in vain
for they were overpowered, and either slain or
captured. Sometimes the village was on a
hill, which afforded great natural facilities for
escape, and many of the unfortunate creatures buried
themselves in caverns, but these they were compelled to
evacuate, for their inhuman pursuers made a tire at the
mouth of the cavern, so that they had only the choice
between suffocation and captivity. Thus all were com-
pelled to yield.

IMPERIAL PARLIAMENT.

(THIS EVENING.)

HOUSE OF LORDS.

---
The LORD CHANCELLOR took his seat on the Wool-
sack shortly after Five o'clock.
Lord KENYON presented a petition from a number
of farmers of Cheshire, praying for protection to agri-
culture.
Lord BEAUMONT presented several petitions in
favour of the Charitable Bequests Bill.

A RT-UNIONS.
Lord MONTEAGLE laid on the table a Bill for the
purpose of regulating the art-unions. The object of the
Bill was to legalise such unions as obtained charters,
and to give to those that did not, provided they were
approved of by the Board of Trade, the same privileges.
The Bill was read a first, and ordt,red to be read a
second time.

GAMING BILL.
The Duke of RICHMOND moved the second reading
of the Gaming Qui-Tam Actions Bill.
After a few words from Lord CAMPBELL, the Bi!1
was read a first time.

PARTY PROCESSIONS.
The Earl of WICKLOW wished,to know whether it
was the intention of the Government to renew the Bill
for the suppression of party processions in Ireland, and
if so, whether it was their intention that the new Bill
should extend to certain new institutions and processions
which had lately sprung up ?
Lord WHARNCLIFFE said the Bill had been intro-
duced in the other Housa, and when it came up to their
Lordships' House any clause could be inserted which
their Lordships should think fit.

CASE OF MR. O'DRISCOL.
Earl FORTESCUE then rose to move for information
respecting the grounds upon which Mr. Alexander
O'Driscoll had been restored to the commission of the
peace. Mr. O'Driscoll was a magistrate in the county
of Cork. It appeared that, while out hunting, he
saw two or three boys on a portion of his land, who
upon seeing Mr. O'Driscoll, run away. Mr. O'Driscoll
pursued them and overtook one of the boys, upon whom
he inflicted severe punishment with his whip. The
matter was brought before the other magistrates, and
Mr. O'Driscoll was fined £2 and costs. Upon this
decision being announced, Mr. O'Driscoll declared
that his brother magistrates had not done him justice,
and some altercation ensued, and the result was that. the
matter was brought under the consideration of the Lord
Chancellor of Ireland, and Mr. O'Driscoll was dismissed
from the magistracy, but was ultimately reinstated in the
commission of the peace. It was respecting this restora-
tion that the Noble Earl moved for information.
Lord WHARNCLIFFE did not think the Noble Earl
had laid any Parliamentary grounds for the production
of papers relating to this case. He would not, however,
meet the case upon technical grounds. He thought it
would be evident to every one who had read the let era
that had passed between the parties in this case, that
Much exaggeration had taken place. There could be no
doubt that the boy in question had been made a tool of
in order to get up a case against Mr. O'Driscol. There
could be no doubt that Mr. O'Driscol had been guilty of
excessive warmth of temper. It would, however, be
remembered that he was interrupted in his field sports,
by a lot of boys, ann their Lordships must all feel how
very annoying it was to be treated in the way these
boys had treated Mr. O'Driscol.—(Laughter.)

-----et
obLroerl
religion
dgiToEn YbNy EithAi
sMßfiellit. thatTh ea doereipgiwa
original
nodwwo
earssinflicted
oi nfgt
hconviction h
(itrmepwr easss endo
ton a h
di iins,p
otshiat
itoou ptoon
gtilivee ctohned rd.
property, respeeting which this Bill hrd been fremed, cused ever fair advantage which they haedthae reiegehdtuctl would rather have suffered fine and confiscation—would demand. —(Hear, hear.) 'rake for.instbanc.
rather have suffered death itself in Sinithfiel-1, than have of the clerk of the Crown in the verybeginning ovfotnhde
lived to see their houses of worship pass into the hands " proceedings—let them take the
in
. M
of those to whom this Bill would give them.
al‘rief;
After a few words from the Earl of GALLOWAY and ,
Lord LYTTELTON in support of the amendment, Bilaurgrhetets,wwashpernehseentmaatdtehae
he 01 Hughes)
' discovered he was, not at, and which i r._
meetingmistake in
whichsw e ahrienga
ritehraat
not z'
The House divided on the amendment, that the Com- wished to correct when he saw Mr. Barrett at Judge
s n between man and man, but it oas
mons' amendments be considered that day three months,
(.I:tuterr.o's chambers._(Hear, hear.) This wasoneinvois,..
Content 27
Non-content
73
Tinhgetrheewienrteerseesvtesroafl
Majority for the amendments
made for
Proxies—Content l4 aotwhhereliensetea
Non-content lo2copies of the indictment—for the names of witnesses---
Majority . _
position was evinced. There were demands
mil :le
instances
nwi
htye.r—e
aai similarea Hear, h eve,
irs. ?.
Majority for the amendments .
hostility to the traversers. The first claim
e the
The amendments were then agreed to. 88 the refusal of which showed a narrow spirit, and abbritttheer
.
The remaining Bills on the table were then forwarded
indictment. Surely the spirit of British law was—if
traversers.. was, as he said before, for the copy 0 1
stage, and their Lordships adjourned,
man were indicted, he should know the accusation
against him, and who were his accusers.—(Hear, hear.).._~
The claim was not made in the spirit of idle curiosty.
but as a matter vital to the defence of the accused
he had a right to know whether the indictment was
En_
' tnesses-7-
cording to the statute, and how, according to the terms
and charges of the indictment he could best defend h
self. He looked to the statute and found that certain
conditions were required. He now understood that thethe
reason leave of inspection was refused, was becausen.,
Crown were desirous to press on the case,
feared advantage might be taken and delaye.
m interposed.ight
b e d
elay Well,
and 'and
just
idfelatyh.e—re(ilweer
in-
justice; and the accused had a right to that delay which
delay,Tmhigebr twbheearse the delay of justice and the delay of ,
would enable him to prepare his defence. The tra-
verser's attorney applied for the caption; the caption,
too, was refused—the Crown said the accused had no
_
right to it, but the judges were not so clear upon the
t.
point. But he would not dwell upon these
minuteo butthe
painful grievances. He would come at once t
grand -question of complaint—the whole ground of ee.
triumph •of the Government on this occasion—the jury.
If all the other proceedings were dictated by a
spirit of the utmost fairness, and if the jury were
unequally, partially, unjustly, improperly selected, no
matter what might be the crime of the individual, the
trial was unfair.—(Hear, hear.) The tribunal was not
what a British subject had a right to expect. There
was an essential want—a want which vitiated the whole
proceedings, and which entitled the prisoner to say be
had not had a fair trial. He (Mr. Wyse) would under-
' take to show them that tribunal was defective—most de-
fective—and, if he did so, he would call upon the British
House of Commons, as the protector of the Constitu-
tion and of the liberties of the people—as the pre-
server of the purity of trial by jury—the greatest
palladium of the British people—to inquire
into the facts and see who, were the defaulters.
He would call upon them to free themselves from the
imputation of being participators in the injustice—to
listen to the people who cried out " Hear us." If they
would not do so, they would show more convincingly
by their own act than by any allegation of the Irish
people, that they were not disposed to do justice to
their fellow-subjects.—(Hear.) (The Hon. Gentlemen
then alluded to two petitions which had been laid on the
table of that House; one from the attorney ot the convicted. .
and the other a counter petition. The Hon. Member
then went on to compare these two documents, and ad-
verted to the mode of getting up the jury list, which he
censured as most one-sided and unfair.) The proceedings
in the Recorders' Court for the revision of the jury list
more resembled a bitter election contest than
an equitable and - solemn arrangement prepara-
tory to. a great and important trial.—(Hear,
hear.) There were two Conservative election
agents for the Conservative party, who objected
to those persons put forward by the repealers, Messrs.
Walker and Jackson ; whilst the repealers made their
objections to those put forward on the other side. The
greatest possible acrimony and bad feeling was exhi- -
bited, but the repealers had the greater cause, for they were the accused. The greatest accuracy was desirable
in those proceedings, and it should have been secured.
Mr. Walker was not refused the opportunity of compar"
ing the lists. He was allowed to compare them with
Mr. M'Grath. (The Hon. Gentleman then read extracts
from the affidavit of Mr. M'Grath, in which the depo-
nent disclaimed that he was influenced by any improper
motive) He (Mr. Wyse) complained that the House of
Commons should allow such irregularities, if they de- . served no other name, to pass unnoticed.—(Cheers.)
There were good grounds 'for believing that, notwith-
standing the affidavit of Mr. M'Grath, fifty or sixty
names had been omitted. One of the persons whose
names were omitted, wrote to the Recorder requesting
that his name should be inserted. To that letter he re- •
ceived no answer.— (Hear, hear.) (The Hon. Member
then read the letter, and contended, from the statements,
that it was not fifteen or sixteen names omitted, but be- • , tween fifty and sixty.) Mr. M'Grath admitted in his
affidavit that distinctions of qualification had been an-
nexed to the names of persona in an improper manner. .
Surely they would not on the opposite side of the Douse
tell him that that was the way in which they them-
selves would wish to have their juries formed and their
trials conducted ?—(Hear, hear.) And if they would
not, after the prima facie case he had made out, he
did not think they would venture to say that inquiry
was uncalled for. For his own part he was by no means
satisfied that there had not been ,nore interference .with
the lists than that of which they were already cognizant.
He was entitled to think there were other ground, for
his motion than those even which had been stated, and -'
he might very fairly be permitted to demand the oppor-
tunity and the means for inquiry.'• Leaving out of the
question the influence that one-tenth might have had on
the whole panel—not heeding what chances_ that circum-
stance might have had in Mr. O'Connell's favonr—there
was the question of still grater importance for the
public, and that was to convince them that ht. had had
a fair trial.—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") It would
have been infinitely better to have had no trial at all ;
for if the people of Ireland were in such a state that
they could not afford to treat them with that impar-
tiality with which they treated Englishmen, better
would it have been to have let the evil go on.—
(Hear, hear.) And then let them rtflect on the charge
which had been delivered by the judge; That
charge called to his mind 'the times of Charles the
Second, when, the judges extenuated evidence. on- the
one
their de,
and
exaggerated it on the other, -just to suit
own, or olier p ople's purposes and wheti no
confidence was felt, or could be telt, in the justice of
the legal tribunals of the countrv.—(Hear, hear.)
He would not
easto into any further que•tiorr of the trial
itself; he precluded by the terms of his motion
from doing so / but he would just ask the Minister
what he had gained by it ?—(Hear, hear.) What was
the result ?—what the profit to the Minister ?—what
the profit to the country ?--:-(Hear, heat..) Was- the
Minister now more satisfied with the state of Ireland •
(Hthan when he first took the reins of Governiment ?
ear, hear.) The consequence of their conduct had
.-
been this, that they driven even moderate men into
immoderate courses. Every one was rapidly becoming
either on the one hand a repealer, or upon the °thee a
stern determined supporter of the Government. There -
were no neutral men—none of that moderate, middle
class, so healthy and useful in a community.,—(H ear,
hear.) But was the repeal question done for
?- Had it
exploded P No ? There they stood in dogged obstinacy
to the Government—in the worst position subjects could
possibly be in--sullenly writhing under feelings of
In o animosit
u py
on and
the of engeatiee.—(Hear, hear.) They
ked laws with more of suspicion, with more
of doubt, with more of distrust and of dislike than ever. •
—(Hear, hear.) ' But had the Government obtained its
immediate object ? No, they had not. They said they
would put down the receipt of money froth the pablio,
and the publication of a certain class of articles in- the
jnewspapers, hut had. they done so ? Why, there
ust the same organisation as ever—just the same ramiwas-
fications throughout the whole body of the Irish people
—just the same sentiments, seditious or not as they might
choose to call them, published in the newspapers,
and more money than ever collected for the rental
retie—(Heer, hear.) They had seen the declaratiens of
the greater portion of the mayors and tort ins
of the
various liberal municipalities of Irehted—and what_ lan-
guage did they use to the Gove,-(nraent ?. Again—did
they think they had suppres.;ed Mr. O'Connell or the
Repeal Association ?. pp
hear.) They had done
neither, as those add- to him from vvithiu the em-
pire, end from without the empire, pretty plainly proved. .
Did the Ministers never think how they, in fact, were "
upholding. Mr. O'Connell ? That man did not attain
his high position by his own talents alone, but by the
wrongs, the folly, and the injustice of the Government
revolution, towards Iphi ies
butr ct (ououtfnh. r t°tr, yh Wise)
revolutioni.
this
. lu wishedena trr,yehr,
eehaaetrte.o)d
.still
choHi continue
cintrue(t
ehallat e
ae d
to't.
rth.
on,
erho t;wat
arhai
integrallli tigll
:ial
ns
cd
ofmnr ocomosrtd'
hope.respite ct
owt i nags keep
-byt heheir;ils
oewwv4i. :lc:
..
a n
peoplenationalities
in Irishman,h a thatramnodnEyi tnii,i, vni
and consecrating this feeling 'of nationality--s.by nou-
rishing Irish feeling, and respecting Irish sentiment, • —(Loud cries that England must expect to keep her faithful and true.
that the
ry t
hwee were s
ereiraisrabtioentioaanld
raitiahntse:
the people of Ireland by every means that they could,
ofdti,:s‘bp.:l()::idrv'intohgemtaora.kth"e) They mustnonvinee
tiarlin:dnt
iti equaltf.ohey ladew(rpee
tnhdoernoeueg with
convinced
in
eEnglished
th
that
r theretlie fwuast urteo.
be a real union—not a parchment union—but a union
of rights, civil and relioieus—not as America was
.with
England, not as Belgium was with :Holland, but
us Scotland as with England—until this waS
shown to be thew movieg principle, there could be no con-
fidence, and, therefore, no real or lasting p_eace.—(ilear,
hear.) It was not enough for the Minister to tell the •
House he would not call for coercion Bills'—
not desire to rule by militar 11'.w—but they Jima tell
that he did.
Ireland by their acts as sell' b their vvords,-that Eng-
land had made mistakes in her cony duct, and that she was
willing to repair the;n--that she was anxious to begin a
new
thin syste m—alati that as wrongs could not produce any-
g but resi,tance, they would now try if kindness and
justice could not lay the foundation of a solid and lasting
union between the two countries, contributing alike to
cHooran.mGitet:etletomainoticuoinrcel,uidnedaeebeyrdmanoeveinwgithfotrhe`;‘
the peace and prosperity of both.—(Cheeri.) The Right
Ara)terleoeft
the petition presented 17th June, into the facts connected
with the formation.of the Special Jury, in the case of
the Queen at the prosecution of the Attorney-General O.
Daniel O'Connell and others."
The motion was seconded by an lloN._ GENTLEMAN,
whose name we could not learn.
wLord ELIOT said, that upon hearing the first part of
ashing t Hon. Gentleman's speech, he fancied that he
r a delusion, and that instead of being in the
House of Commons on the 15th July, he was there in
February last, dismissing the question of the State-trials.
At that time the whole question was fully discussed by
her Majesty's MiniSter% and it was, therefore,t not be- -
coining at the present moment to enter into those sub-
jects again. Ile would confine himself to the points.— •
breught before theliouse hy the Right lion. Gentleman

HOUSE OF COMMONS, July 15.
THE IRISH TRIALS.
The Orders of the Day were then read, and severally
postponed, and
Mr. WYSE rose to bring forward the motion of which
he had given notice on this subject. He first presented
a large number of petitions from several places in Ire-
land, praying for inquiry. He had also another petition
to which he begged to draw the attention of the House.
It was from a number of noblemen and gentlemen deeply
interested in the tranquillity and prosperity of Ireland,
complaining in strong language of the state of that
country—of the discontent that universally prevailed
throughout it, arising from the bad administration of the
law—of the inferior position in which the nation was
kept—of the inadequate representation of the people—of
the existence of the Church Establishment, and stating
the feeling that universally existed, that Ireland
had not her fair share of the legislation of
the United Empire.—(Hear.) (The Hon. Member
read some of the signatures to the petition, which in-
chided the names of the Duke of Leinster, the Marquis
of Kildare, Lord Rossmore, and a large number of Irish
noblemen.) In submitting to the consideration of the
House the motion of which he had given notice a con-
siderable time back, he begged to state that he came for-
ward on no insufficient grounds, and at no improper
period, while the subject was one which he believed to
every part of the empire was of the greatest importance.
He did not come forward without sufficient grounds, for
he presented to the House on the 21st of March, a peti-
tion signed by no less than 750,000 of the inhabitants of
Ireland, calling for immediate inquiry into the state of
Ireland. Added to that petition, he had presented an-
other, signed by 26,000 persons, reiterating the same
prayer. Other petitions had been presented, signed by
49,000 persons, forming in the whole a large aggre-
gate of the Irish people, all praying for
inquiry. To these petitions had been added the one
presented by the solicitors retained for the traversers,
and that of the Corporation of Dublin, each demanding
the same inquiry. In opposition to these petitions, there
had only been laid on the-table the one petition of Mr.
Magrath, and, after a careful comparison of that petition
with that of the traversers, it appeared to him, so far
from modifying the statements of their petition, that it
had confirmed his opinion of its authenticity. When to
these was added the petition just laid on the table of the
House, one not coming from men connected with the Re-
peal Association, but from men, many of whom were
directly opposed to repeal—men who, from their pro-
perty, long acquaintance with Ireland, and high rank, were
fair representatives of the aristocratic opinions of that
country, and when they all concurred in saying
that the country was in a state of division—that
discord prevailed in it, and that there were no hopes
of relief from that state, except by complying
with the demands of justice, he thought he had some
claims on the attention of the House. He believed that
he did not come forward at an improper period. During
the whole time the subject was pending in the law courts
in Ireland he had refrained from bringing it forward,
and since that time he had been debarred from doing so
in consequence of the long period that elapsed between
his moving for certain papers and their being laid on the
table. The question was still pending before another
House, and he should not now have interposed, but that
he trusted he should be able to show he was dealing
with quite a distinct subject. Let it not be said, there-
fore, that he came forward on insufficient grounds, or at
an improper period. As to the subject itself, surely
there was never one which demanded more earnest
attention from her Majesty's Government. He had not
the advantage of legal knowledge, and least of all could
he claim their attention after the eminent men who had
discussed and exhausted the subject. But this he would
say, that he was an Irish Catholic—the representative of an
Irish Catholic constituency-=and he could not but feel,
with almost all his countrymen, BLit Mr. O'Connell was
an eminent man in the age in which they lived. He
could not but feel that to his exertions millions of his
fellow-countrymen owed the throwing open the gates
of the Constitution, and that he himself had the power
of addressing them in that place. He also remembered
that Mr. O'Connell, though a Catholic, had no Catholic
on his jury. He remembered, as an Irishman, he had
been adjudged by a tribunal to a • sentence which they
had heard in that House from an English
.jury and
English judges he would not have been exposed ; and
these questions, however closely they were now con-
fined to Ireland, might soon be extended to themselves.
The worst evils were those which crept in under the
sanction of justice; the worst and most dangerous re-
sults were those which were consigned to the
statute book, by the decision of judicial men. They
might not be able, perhaps, openly to assail the Consti-
tution, but they might undermine it, and this undermin-
ing was what was most to be apprehended. Give him a
people who had free discussion, and who lived under the
aegis of equal laws, and he cared not what Ministry or
what Legislature they might create—that people would
sooner or later vindicate themselves in the eye of the
world. He did not mean to discuss the question in con-
nection with its legal difficulties. He should limit him-
self to the facts of the case. He asked for no condem-
nation or censure of the Government. He should not
discuss points of law, nor enter into the subject in con-
nection with the matter before the House of
Lords. The object of the Government for many
years in Ireland had been to neutralise the ques-
tion of repeal. It was considered a matter of
importance in Ireland either to exorcise the question
of repeal from the country. or to crush it, to expel it,
either gently or by main force. The opinions on repeal
were various—some thought it a magnificent impossi-
bility—many argued that it would be a good thing if it
could be carried. Others, not only considered it could
not be carried, but that if carried it would be a danger-
ous thing for Ireland. Others were opposed to repeal on
the grounds that by it Ireland would be divided from
her powerful sister and exposed to all the jealousies and
discussions of a rival State. Others considered it would
be contrary to the fundamental laws of the Censtittition.
Each of these parties were necessarily guided by their se-
veral opinions in their attempt to get rid of this question.
If proper means had been adopted for the redress of
these grievances, and good measures had been brought
forward, the repeal agitation would have totally disap-
peared. But the other party were placed in the posi-
tion of those who must either completely crush repeal
by violent means, or resort to fraud where they could
not use force. To crush repeal by violent means was
out of the questibn. A Coercion Bill, if passed into a
law, would only adjourn and not extinguish the ques-
tion of repeal. The Government thought it advisable
to trust to the means at their disposal for crushing re-
peal. During the last session the question of repeal WAS
allowed to make progress. They were all familiar With
the meetings that took place, and the freqUent appeals
made to the Government in that House, on the subject ;
and it appeared, from subsequent evidence, that even
then the Government were not inattentive to the course
of events; There Was the obvious • course open
to them of attacking the meeting which Me.
O'Connell had announced—the general convention
to be held in Dublin for the purpose of devising a plan
of renewed action. It was thought that th Govern-
ment would wait until that assembly had seen convened,
and had they done so, there would have been
legs
ground of complaint, inasmuch as it would obviously
have been a direct violation of the Act against con-
ventions. The session, however, had not long closed
when the Government anticipated the meeting to be
held in November, by attacking the first meeting, which
was to be held near Dublin, namely, the meeting at
Clontarf, and not content with that, immediately pro-
ceeded to engage in the prosecution which now formed
the subject of' immediate inquiry. Whether • the Go-
vernment on that oeoasion were too late or 00 soon—,
whether they acted with hesitation or with prudeme—
whether it were a wise course to risk at so late a period
a collision with an eccited people, or whether it would
not have been amply sufficient for their purpose to have
instituted the prosecution without taking any notice of
the meeting, it was not his intention at preseet to discuss.
The act was sudden and unforeseen an the part of the Go-
vernment, though it arose out of expressions which
could not reasonably be viewed with' apprehension when
they considered the views of him from whom they fell.
It did appear strange that this meeting, the last of the
whole series of repeal meetings, should be that one which
the Government had determined upon putting down. It
now appeared that there had been all along a serious:
intention on the part of the Government to indict for a