The Sun.
London, England, 1821-03-16 00:00:00

INTERFERENCE OF THE MILITARY AT THE CAR

LISLE ELECTION.
Mr. JAMES said, the subject which he was
about to bring under the consideration of the
House was important, not because the rights of
his constituents alone were at stake, but as it
affected the rights of the British people general-
ly.—His motion would decide whether, at con-
tested elections for Members to sit in that House,
Magistrates could call in the Military, and whe-
ther, in fine, these elections were to be decided at
the point of the bayonet. During last Session,
his constituents presented a petition to the House,
in-which they complained of the illegal conduct
of three Magistrates of the county of Cumber-
land, who, at a time that they were peaceably
assembled in order to carry on the election of a
Member for the city of Carlisle, introduced two.
companies of soldiers, against law, and against
the rights of the electors. The petitioners pray-
ed the House to be protected against a repetition
of such attacks, but owing to the painful subject
upon which the House Aas then engaged, it was
not taken into consideration during that Session.
A Noble. Lord, the Member for Westmorland,
afterwards asserted that the allegations in this
petition were untrue.; but that assertion must
have been made from hearsay, the Noble Lord
not being on .the spot, and he (Mr. J.) havieg
taken great pains to ascertain the truth of all the
alleg-ations in the petition. The facts of the case
were shortly these. Previouseo the last election
fln Carlisle, on account of some circumstances
which .t was not necessary to explain, the canvass
was unusually long. • Party feeling prevailed,
then, as it ever will in such places' as Carlisle ;
but, on this occasion; it arose rather higher than
before. Sir Philip MusgraVe, now Member for.
Petersfield; and •he (Mr. James) were the caudi-
dates. The election was opened at the Town-
hall; and on the 24th id May at noon.polling
commenced. As the first rally was coming up l
to the poll, some scuffle ensued, not unusual-in
these cases, and Sir P. Musgrave's agents imme-
diately mae this a pretence for going to the
Mayot.' and requiring, the interference of the mili-
tary.
Now it might be asked, why the military
were there at all? He himself was surprised
at it ; for he found in Blackstone, that during
an.election, the military ought to he removed
from the place one day preceding the election,
and -not suffered to return until one day after it
was over. Howeeer, the military were there ;
'hut the Mayor refused to employ them, telling
the agents of Sir Philip Musgrave., that if they ap-
prehended any impediment at all in their way to
the hustings, 'he himself would go at their head ;
there was, however; no occasion for the interfe-
rence. of the Mayor... lie (Mr. J.) contended,
therefore, that the Magistrates were not justified
in calling in the .military ; for as a riot, if it hap-
pened, would void the -election, so there was no
occasion of having recourse to this unconstitutional
mode of stippresSing it. Things continued in this
way until half-past two o'clock', and then with-
out a shadow of pretence,-Dr. Lowry, a Magis-
trate and Doctor in divinity, caused the Riot Act
to be read, without giving the Mayor any intimae
tioh of-the step whiCh he was going to take. The
'Magistrate received no interruption whilst he was
reading the Act. in three-quarters of an hear
after, the streets were cleared—not by 'military,
bat by a hea-Vy shower of raine. but re.4lssernbling
in a quarter of an hour afterwards, Mr. Foster,
the other Magistrate, under pretence that he ap;
. prehended a riot, called out two companies of Sol-
. &vs. lie vres.ure the officer whose duty it -was;
'to attend, must have felt his situation. mestpaine
fel; and'he 'asked could any thing he enore 'de-
grading to the character of a soldier; or insulting
to the .people.than such -wanton conduct ; and he
was sure if til,e House passed it over, it woislel be.
one of the worst orriens,of the times in which we
live. At he (Mr. J.) and his-friends were pree
paring to leave the Town Hall. they saw the sill-1
diet-8 loading their inuskets with hall-carteidgei;,
. which he contended was also against law ; for'
thoagh the Riot Act eanctione,d-m. akin.g arrestsi

it never would Sanction thatthe soldiers were tomtiy,
the people:-411ear!):•-It was a basetrickto set aside
by intithidation and viocenCe his (Mr.: J.'s) elec '
tide; *hich they could not do by fair
The Member then mentioned that a joiner
darned Ci•oshie was 'taken tip by Mr. Foster for
a pretetided asiatitt oti Hesitant, the other
Magistrate, and that this maw lay in prison 'fr dm •
the 94tli bcf May to the 24th of August, when he
was at leii tli liberated vrithotit arty ptocess be-
ing commeneed• against him:---(Hear!)-.—The
lion. Alember; after some remarks in fdprobation
of the conclzict of the MagistrateS in 'dallipg. in the -
military, in
.conseiittehce; he Contended, of the
new systeM grdwitig up .of governing by- the
sword, disclaimed any thing like personal feel-
ings on the subject. He had no animosity to the
Maaistrates because they supported his opponents,
and was as a Member of Parliament he brought
this subjeCt before thelfouse. lie concluded by.
moving, that
.the petition df certain freemen. of
the City of Carlisle; signed in May last, and pre-
sented
to this House on the 9gth of June, coin-
plaining of the interference of the military at an
election, should be new entered as read; and that
the same should be referred td, a ComMittee di'
. .
Privileges, to report their optmons thereOri to the
House. •

Sir PHI MUSGRAVE opposed the motion, but
in so low a tone of vOice, as to be inaudible dur-
ing the greater part of his speech, in the Gallery;
The lion. Baronet read part of -several deposi-
tions.which he Stated were made from.accurate
,observatitin by many respectable persons, ex.:
pressiVe`of the riotous conduct of the mob. He
would undertake to say, that very great obstruc-
tions were made by an outrageous mob,
_Which
rendered the interposition of the soldiers neces
sary. Moreover, the authority of the Mayor was
.treated. With the utmost contempt. It was on
the 24th May, after the first party had voted,
that those who itere supposed to be his (Sir Phi-
lip's) friends, attempted to proceed from the Cord=
mittee Room where the tallies were made, when
they were attacked byan .ontrageous Mob, and
several were knocked dawn and .otherwise-ma
treated. , On this occasion two or three of his
voters were
.So ill used, that they were intl.:
midated from proceeding to poll, and returned •
and declared they were afraid to go up to. vote
that day, but must wait a more tranquil period of
the election. A great number indeed, were
prevented from voting that day. With respect
to the interference of the military, withoUt due
legal authority from the civil power, he was inJ
structed to say that a message was sent into the
Mayor at the Town Hall, to request more effec-
tual protection to the voters ; and his answer was.
that he was so much engaged with the voters that
he could not come out himself, but that he left •
the matter in the hands of Dr. Lowry, and he
should be' perfectly satisfied with whatever step
he should think fit to take. 'lt was found neces-
sary to read tire Riot Act, and call in the assist
ance of two- companies of infantry from the
Castle, to support the Civil Power. had it not •
been for the providential interposition-of a storm •
of rain and thunder, which fell at the time th?. •
disorder was at its height, he did not know to
what extremities the mob might not have pr 0....
ceeded. This, however, only dispersed them for •
the moment, as the populace re-assembled again.
The Hon. Baronet, in conclusion, read a letter
from the Commanding Officer of the military erh-
ployed on the occasion, declaring his opinion
that the Civil .Power was inadequate to the maiu-
tenance of order.

Sir JANics MAcKINTosH said that whether it
was owing to the disadvantageous situation.:.
in which he was seated, or to his sense Of hear-
ing not being sufficiently acute, much of the rtble.•.:.
and luminous statement of the Hon. Baronet had
been lost upon him.. lie liad heard eitcrtigh; !row--
ever, to inform him, that if the mode which the'.
lion. Baronet advocated in the•ease..of the'
lisle Election were to be adapted in all cases, we
mast in future introduce the military Upon those
occasions, •and repeal the law prohibiting their
exclusion.—(Hear,,hear!)—The doctrine of the
lion. Baronet- went to transfer the protection-. if
elections froth the civil power t' the Military, and
it was for the House' to consider whether stichsait.
improvement as 'this was desirable. The lion.'
Baronet thlked of an outrageous mob as a reason
for his proposed. innovation. • •Now, ...there were::
two statements made by the rival candidates_ at
all elections, in reference to the conduct of the
popular party. What the opponent, of the por:
pular candidate would call
.the ou'trageous
fence of a mob ; the latter would designate as'
nothing more than a spirited display of popular'.
feeling.—(Hear, hear !)--if a bold expression'
that feeling was to be considered as a riot, then.
there never yet had been an election at wirier '
the presence.of a military force was not- neceS-.
sary. But he protested against any such inter-" •
pretation. What was this alarming care. of 'riot
made out by the lion. Baronet ? Why it ap- •
peared,.. according to his statement, that three
voters, who were in his interest, being so Ina
timidated by the formidable aspect of their oppo='.
nents, postponed giving their votes, till the adverse •
party became raore trantinil.—(Hear, hear !) IL e
had never seen any day of a popular Contest in
which those who were 'on the other iide.had not
found it convenient to choose theiN hours to come •
to the hustings. It was Sitid tlnft th'ere was no
legal necessity to march the troops out of Car-
lisle, as the-Act Eaucti6neil•their presence, it be-
ing a garrison-t9wo. 'frne; but it was a daring
'violation of the law to march troops into
town while an election wai'going on. The law 1
antlioriSing theHpresence of thO military was past-
e 4,1 only for the' preteCtion of the King's castle's:
and, fortresses,, I,ondon,Westtninster, LiVcrpopl, -
and 'other large places had ail been. leff exposed_
duri;;4-t etectiens,---,p!t troop; 'Weie to be intror
.du.ced into Cat-lasi* fiecaps.e, fosoc,th, there hap
pened to be ;mold co•Atle .there, which mule
a garrison-town...•,,.Ttte:introductionAt a body of
Wo:F..intateuly hostile to the ff:,peiples df
the CetWitUtion, :but ct:OPP.I n to•tli,.' •
e •
_ehtue ..which, made an e*ceptlon-inAvaur
~ of _
castles and fortresses. He.:thotigtit, ft'Om the case '
which had been submitted...-to- jp. so
clear and circumstantial a m4iincr;iihztt they v,,e, e'
bound to inquire vittettier the rd iStratis', by.
their conduct; had not bqn of .a violent
reg