The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-17 00:00:00

MR. O'CONNELL IN WATERFORD.

WATERFORD, THURSDAY EVENING.—Ai ten o'clock
this morning the various trades of this important town,
with their gay flags and banners, proceeded down the
quay by Thomas-street, Summer-hill, and on to the old
Cork-road, by which Mr. O'Connell and the numerous
cavalcade that accompanied hire, were approaching the
town. Several triumphal arches were erected along the
line of march. The whole scene presented an exceed-
ingl3.l pleasing and effective coup The various
municipalities of the province were represented in Li-
merick.

Mr. O'CoNfir.m. proceeded to the Town-hall, and pre-
sented himself at the window, in front of the vast mul-
titude. When the cheering had subsided he said,
" Hurrah for the repeal.—(Cheers.) Onr hearts are in
the same place ; the persons listening to me have one
hundred thousand hands—they have but one heart—
(Cheers)—they have one hundred thousand arms—they
have but one bosom.—(Cheers.) I told you that there
were two means of obtaining repeal—the two ingredients
were necessary for the cup of Irish prosperity. The
first was peaceable conduct; the second was persever-
ance. lam here to thank you in the name of Ireland
for your peaceable demeanour, and I thank you equally
for the determination you have evinced to persevere—
(Cheers.) Peace was one of the ingredients—determina-
tion is the second, and why should you not.persevere
The Hon. Gentleman recommended reading-rooms and
organisation, and then retired, and the vast multitude
separated.
The banquet was held in the evening in the large and
spacious room of the Town-hall, which was beautifully
fitted up for the occasion.
The chair was occupied by Thomas Meagher, Esq.,
Mayor of Waterford, on whose right sat Mr. O'Connell,
the Mayor of Cork, E. B. Roche, M.P., R. A. Fitzgerald,
ex-J. P. On his left were the Right Rev. Dr. Foran,
the Mayors of Limerick and Clonmel, Dr. Gray, and
Alderman Racket.

The CHAIRMAN proposed " The Queen."—(Loud
Cheering.) " Prince Albert, and the rest of the Royal
Family resident in England."—(Cheers.)
The next toast was " O'Connell, Ireland, and the
Repeal of the Union."—(The entire assembly rose simul-
taneously, and continued cheering for several minutes.)
Mr. O'CortriELL rose to return thanks, but the cheers
burst forth again and again. When silence was restored,
he said :—There are two questions to be solved by think-
ing men—to be solved by every friend of Ireland. The
first of those questions is, what is the next step we are
to take for repeal?—(Cheers.) The second question is,
when shall we get repeal?--(Cheers.) The result of
the first question is certain. I don't think we can suffi-
ciently mismanage, even if we designed it, the repeal
cause, so as to wake it at all doubtful that tho union is

Ito be repealed.—(Cheers.) I have no more doubt of it
than I have of my own existence.—(Cheers.) Let
there be any violent concussion of the British Ministry
—let war break out in any part of Europe—let
Spain become tired of obeying France in her revolu-
tionary insanity—or let France become impatient of
conquering Spain—let any country engage in war
with another, for England must always be a party
to a wrangle. I heard of a fellow who, being
asked why he had engaged in a dispute, said,
by way of excuse, that he never saw two dogs
fighting, but he wished to take part with one or the other
of them.—(Laughter.) So it is with England. No two
dogs in Europe—no two royal dogs—can quarrel, but
England must take part with one or the other.—(Hear,
hear.) There is no event menacing England—there is
no event menacing the public peace of the world that
will not give us repeal more readily than I can pronounce
the word.—(Cheers.) The first question that presenta,
itself before me, with reference to our future exertions,
is what we are to to do with England. I have felt it my
duty to speak strongly of the English Government, and
to accuse the English people of apathy to our cause,
though I rejoice at the manner in which I was myself
received in the spring of this year in England. I recol-
lett with delight the meeting in Covent-garden and the
other scenes in which English manliness seemed to pro-
nounce in favour of justice to Ireland ; but, like the
scenes in the play in Covent-garden, they have passed
like a beautiful phantasmagoria before me, and vanished
from my sight, without leaving a trace behind, except
m) gratitude and thantrulness to the individuals who
were engaged in those different exhibitions.—(Hear.)
I thank the people of England for their exhibitions when
I was amongst them, yet those exhibitions have passed
away without any good resulting from them.—(Hear.)
What part has the English people taken in looking for
the punishment of the miscreants who persecuted us ?
Are they seeking for Ireland an equality with England
in civil rights ? Is not there a complete disregard
evinced there of everything Irish ? and am I then to go
there with a begging petition and say—be so good and
so kind as to come forward to ask for inquiry, and seek
for the punishment of our oppressors.—(Hear, hear.)
At one time, I confess, I thought that might have been
a wise and prudent—l should rather say a cunning plan;
but I differ with myself totally, and am now of opinion
that it would rather savour of degradation than of cun-
ning or dignity.—(Hear, hear.) But what is it that im-
presses this more strongly on my mind ? It is the feel-
ing that we cannot make an impression on England
while the adamantine wall—if I may use the phrase—
the figure is bad, but the description is accurate—of the
English press, stands between us and the people.—
(Hear.) The English press will not report the real
stet 3 of the country, or put forward our grievances. They
would do so if the English people felt an interest in the
subject, for then their own interests would be affected if
they did not do so, but their interests are not affected by
their neglect, which proves the foregone apathy of the
English people. The Irish shall not continue in chains.
Tee hour of thraldom is going by—and it is the duty of
these who require security for the integrity of the
empire and its continued consolidation under the same
crown, to look to our complaints, and endeavour to
mitigate them by doing us justice. Every one admits
that the elements of society in Ireland are about being
recast, and that is a fact that all parties in Ireland are
agreed upon. We all know that it only requires even a
portion of the Protestants to join Mr. Smith O'Brien
and Mr. Hutchinson, and that then repeal is inevitable.
—(Loud cheers.) Mr. Grey Porter, indeed, talks of
calling out the Irish militia, and having 100,000 of them
disciplined and armed.—(Cheers.) He says the object
he has in doing so is to give " pluck" to the Irish mem-
bers. I believe I had people enough to-day about me to
give me " pluck"—(Cheers)—without arraying them in
military form ; and I tell Mr. Grey Porter, although I
would rejoice to witness the military discipline of his
100,000 militia, that the moral revolution that is going
forward in Ireland can be as well achieved by men in
frieze coats as it possibly could by men in scarlet.—
(Ilear, hear, and cheers.) Yes, it is our business to be
incessant in our exertions. Let every man be ready to
work. We will take no paltry excuses. I will begin
with your representatives.—(Hear.) Every man must
work for Ireland, or he is . not an Irishman. I will
not consent to advise any human being to vote for any
man who is not an Irishman.—(Cheers.) How are you
to know whether he be an Irishman or not ? I'll tell
you—the sirnme of an Irishman is repealer.—(Cheers.)
Again I say, everybody who is not with me is against
me. Hurrah for the repeal ! Recollect that we are now
coming to a new year—that we must take another step
in advance, and the laggard who remains behind us is aot
one of us.—(Hear.) Let the Irish people stand together,
shoulder to shoulder, in the peaceful contest. They are
entitled to the restoratioe of that Parliament out of
which they have been swindled, and let them protest in
the presence of their God, without the profaneness of an
oath, but with all its sanctity, that Ireland shall be a
nation again.—(Cheers.)
The CHAIRMAN next gave, " The Repeal Martyrs."
The next toast was, " The Protestant Patriots of Ire-
land."—(Cheers.)
E. B. RocnE, Esq., M.P., rose to return thanks. He
said—l can recollect when the Protestant patriots, and
that I believe means repealer, were very few indeed ; but
now we count amongst our leaders a Smith O'Brien, a
GI attan, a Hutchinson, and, though last net least, a Grey
Porter.—(Cheers.) It is true Mr. Grey Porter has not
declared himself a repealer, but he has written in favour
of repeal.—(Hear, hear.) Oh ! every Irishman ought
gentleman'smt ovtmr eeanstu, rle aump pen.tr he ealdpamphletnot
ernawinlti
ti cmo hs;s hyeal
that,fs it so I,ed the t.
hf
er o
adoptionr
e,
et natt
of the plan proposed ; but the proposition is A noble and
Ireland ought tq be de-
"fended o e
rtoled sse,by ia
owndi iss'otnr—s
her ;Ttitatt as France has 1 er national
,guard, as. America has its militia, and England its yeo-
ina li•elandOtiAlt a'Tho to have a national militia.—
.(Lc ud cheers.) I think that is a bold and a constitutional
question—it is, at least, generous, free, and " racy of
the soil."—(Loud cheers.) The Hon. Gentleman then
rev'ewed, in eloquent terms, the principles and provisions
of thy, Charitable Bequests Act. He condemned, in
strong and unreserved terms, this insidious attempt to
render the Catholic Church and its ministers subservient
to th. State.

Mt O'Connell retired about doyen o'clock, and was
folloi, ed by the entire cornpany.—Freenian's Journal.

CIL A BITABLE BEQUESTS ACT.-MEETING IN

WATERORD.
Mr. O'Connell, yesterday, attended a very numerous
meeting of the Roman Catholic laity and clergy in Wa-
terford, to protest against the Charitable Benuests Act.
The mayor presided. Dr. Foran, Roman Catholic Bishop,
and several of the leading citizens, were present.

TRIAL of MR. PORT at CHESTER.
(Reported in the Times of the 11th instant.)

The trial of Mr. Port proves, beyond contradic-
tion, how juries have been imposed upon in questions
of medicine by interested doctors, in order to prop
up their sinking theory (the organic). The law, as
laid down by Sir Mathew Hale, in " Hale's Pleas of
the Crown," and affirmed by Blackstone, at a time
when medicine was not made such a trade of as it is
at present, in cases similar to Mr. Port's, is as fol-
lows :

"If a physician gives a person a potion without any
intent to do him any bodily hurt, but with an intent
to cure or prevent a disease, and, contrary to the expec-
tation of the physician, it kills him, this is no homicide,
and the like of a chirurgeon ; and I hold their opinion to
be erroneous that think, if he be no licensed chirurgeon
or physician that occasioneth this mischance, that then
it is a felony, for physic and salves were before licensed
physicians and chirurgeons ; and therefore, if they be
not licensed according to the statute of the 3d Henry,
c. 11., of the 14th Henry VIII., c. 5., they are subject
to the penalties of the statutes ; but God forbid that any
mischance of this kind should make any person, not
licensed, guilty of murder or manslaughter."
Of late years a competition has arisen with the
diplomaed doctors, and consequently our judges find it
convenient, and in opposition to the before-mentioned
high legal authorities, to adopt another dictum,
which is, "that the accused shall he deemed guilty of
manslaughter if he acted with rashness or negli-
gence," and the judges of this "rashness or negli-
gence," are—who do you think ? The judge or jury ?
tiro, but the doctor, with the piece of parchment in
his pocket, who is directly interested in obtaining a
conviction. The very forcible reason given by Sir
M. Hale, and affirmed by Blackstone, that " physic
and salves were before licensed doctors," is so power-
ful, that we need not say another word to prove the
iniquity of the present mode of laying down the law.
The idea of placing an honest man on his trial for a
felony, when his only crime is that he does not agree
with the opinions of the interested doctors, and when
he has done all he can to save, is so monstrous, that
every lover of liberty must rejoice at the triumphal
acquittal of Mr. Port. It is hoped that the answers of
the doctors, on their cross-examination on that trial,
will open the eyes of the people. Our judges of the
present day appear to combine with the doctors
against the people ; it is, however, to be hoped, that
the verdict of acquittal in Mr. Port's case, in spite of
both judge and doctors, will operate as a lesson to
them. The only thing that should have been done to
Mr. Port, if he acted as an apothecary, was (as stated
by Sir M. Hale) for the Apothecaries' Company to
have brought an action against him on the statute for
penalties. That's the true remedy for doctors ; but we
presume that that, like Sir James Graham's Bill, is
not sufficient protection for them. If a surgeon, when
drunk, kills a person in performing an operation, we
hear of it because it is so palpable that nothing can
shield him ; but with respect to a physician, he seems
to be responsible to no one ; and the only reason that
he is not responsible appears to be, that they (the
physicians) all differ in theory and practice. The
subject is certainly deserving of serious consideration.

The weather during Saturday and Sunday has been
most variable, and a thaw has at last succeeded the frost
of the previous ten days. During the early part of
Saturday the mercury was as low as 25 degrees, with a
boisterous wind from the N.E., but by seven o'clock it
had risen to 29 degrees, and at noon to 32 degrees, at
which point it stood at six o'clock in the evening. About
noon the wind veered from N.E. to S.E., and for a short
time to S.S.E., with a light fall of sleet, but just before
one o'clock a fall of snow commenced, which continued
at intervals until eight o'clock in the evening, when the
wind returned to the NE. The lowest point of the
thermometer at the Royal Humane Society's Receiving-
house, Hyde Park, was, during Saturday night, 31 de-
grees. On Sunday morning at seven o'clock, the mercury
had risen to 35 degrees, a thaw haring commenced about
two hours previously. The sky during the morning was
particularly dense and hazy until between ten and eleven 1
o'clock, when the wind shifted from N.E. to S.E., and
for a time the sun partially appeared. Shortly after
eleven o'clock, however, the atmosphere assumed its
former density, and at noon the mercury stood at 39 de-
grees, at which point it remained during the afternoon.
About one o'clock there was a light drizzling rain, which
continued until nearly two, when the wind was again
N.E. In the early part of the evening the new moon
was visible, but was afterwards obscured by the hazy
state of the atmosphere. At seven o'clock the thermo-
meter in Hyde Park was 37 degrees.
During the early part of Sunday morning, the ice
on the Serpentine was quite dry, and from between seven
and eight o'clock until about nine the skaters enjoyed
some excellent sport ; but their nvmber having then
become much increased, and the cracks in the ice having
been affected by the thaw, some water oozed through,
and eventually the whole surface became covered, in
some parts to the depth of full an inch. Throughout
the middle of the day and the afternoon, the number of
spectators was very great, but the number of the skaters
during the day did not exceed 4,000. Towards evening
the ice became very dangerous. About three o'clock
much amusement was occasioned by a lady, accompanied
by a respectably-dressed man, appearing with skates on
the ice. For about an hour she performed various
evolutions with much ability, but she then had a fall, and
immediately left the ice. About four o'clock, a number
of lads, coning off the ice to the north shore, were im-
mersed, but the water not being more than two or three
feet deep, they were immediately got out. At an early
hour on Sunday morning, printed bills, of which the fol-
lowing is a copy, were posted against the tress round
the ice:—

"Notice.—ln case of accident on the ice, the public
are requested not to crowd round the spot, nor to inter-
fere with the icemen. J. Chadic., Secretary, Royal
Humane Society."

The number of skaters on the Serpentine on Saturday
was about 6,000. No accidents occurred.

On tho Round-pond in Kensington-gardens the number
of skaters on Saturday was 3,000, and on the Long-water.
4,000, without any accidents. On Sunday, on the latter
piece of ice, the number of skaters was nearly the same.
Amongst them were several members of the Skating
Club, who were easily distinguished by the silver skate
suspended from their necks. On the Round-pond,
although the ice was throughout the day nearly dry, not
above 600 skaters ventured upon it. No accidents oc-
curred.

The ornamental lake in St. James's-park was attended,
on Saturday, by about 3,000 skaters and sliders. The
ice was in excellent condition, and in thickness about
three inches and a half. On Sunday, as the day ad-
vanced, the continued thaw having melted the snow,
rendered the ice sloppy and disagreeable. There were,
however, about 3,000 skaters and sliders during the day,
and the banks were crowded with well-dressed company.
No serious accident occurred.
In the Regent's-park, where, as we mentioned on
Saturday, the ice was very much cut up, and so full of
flaws as likely to prove dangerous in the event of a thaw,
about 6,000 skaters and sliders attended on that day, the
banks being lined with spectators, but on Sunday the ice
was found to be sloppy and dangerous. The park-
keepers and the men from the Royal Humane Society,
with the police of the D division, under Mr. Super-
intendent Hughes, succeeded in keeping the public from
those parts that were dangerous, and by such judicious
management, although during the day there were up-
wards of 9,000 skaters and sliders, not a single accident
occurred.

The pickpockets mustered very strongly in all the
parks, particularly in St. James's, where, from the ab-
sence of the police, it is supposed they made a rich
harvest. Several handkerchiefs, which could not easily
be carried, were hidden in various parts ; a white silk
one, with orange border, was deposited on one of the
hurdles near the Humane Society's marquee.