The Sun.
London, England, 1818-02-03 00:00:00

U& a' ITS t rChitions tor hichie4.

6. "Iliat there is evet yreason to believe their
persreutors knew them to he innocent, while they

were subjected to these indignities, from their re-
cent iineration ‘vithout trial, some uncondition-
si;;y, and others upon their own recognizances,
which hive heen since cancelled by their accusers.
7. 1 hat this Meeting sincerely sympathizes with
a!: !hese victinh of arbitrary power and hired ac-

en.wion ; and (lee ins then; eminently entitled to
poWie support.
S. That the manly firmn.ess of Mr. Evans, sen.
ilr Evans, jun, aiM Mr. Ilenbotv, in retusing any
hitt .11 lorial liberation,sigually entitles them

to the worgovst a.pprobation-, for haring afforded

pitorlaer noble example, that even in. this age ty-

rauuy needs only to be resisted to be subdued.

9, IttAt a subscription be now opened for the

assistance of the Messrs. Evans, Mr. Benbnw,
and such other -sufferers under the recent suspen-
sion of th. 2 IJabeas Corpus Act, as may stem en-
titled to public assistance and support by the Com-
mittee.
10. That Mr. Samuel Brooks be Treasurer ; and
Mr. Thomas Cleary, Secretary of the Committee.
11. That the Thanks of this Meeting be given
to Sir F. Burdett, Bart., for his public spirit in
taking the Chair on the present occasion ; and
for the constant and persevering- attachment he
has shewn to the cause of reform.
He then read the several resolutions. His Lord-
Atip proceeded. Why did his Majesty's Ministers
bring all their informatics] to the "looses of Par-
liament concealed in a green big ? Why was it rt'.
len. ed to a Secret COMlllitfee ? if acts of viorence
had been really committed by the people, there
could have been no reason for secrecy; neither
when they wet e prepared to take the individuals
into custody, could there have been any reason
for concealing the acts of which they were , ac-
cused. Htd they received their information front
credible persons, what motive could they possibly
have in. concealing their names ? No man who
came forward to give information of acts of vio-
lence committed against Government or the laws
of the country, could possibly wish to have his
name concealed ; for his own part, said his Lord-
ship, if he bad given information to Government
of acts of treason against the State, he- would
accuse such a man as he conceived merited the ac-
cusation, and avow what he had done. There
could have been no just ground of secrecy. The
fact was, Isis Majesty's Ministers were conscious
they had hired their emissaries to give informa-
tion against the pe,sple. They knew they had
hired Oliver, and the other villains connected

him, to give information against the people,
'and they kr;ew also that their information was
false. What was the reason his Majesty's Minis-
ters again proposed to bring down another green
bag, to be referred to a Committee similarly con-
stituted as the last ? After all the alarms they had
excited had subsided,—after the Constitutiott of
the country had been restored.,—atter all grounds
of apprehension must have ceased, it appeared
that aiiother green bag was to he referred to a
Committee. What was proposed by this ? It was
in order to carryon the delusion a little longer.—
There were in the country many willing dupes;
many aliowed themselves to be duped who were
interested in the plunder of the people ; it was
for this reason the alarm was necessary to be kept
up. His Majesty's Ministers were at length sen-
sible that their villainy was exposed, and their
conduct laid open in the face of day. They did
not dare to meet the indignation of the public,
and that was the reason why they were endea-
vouring to keep up the juggle a little longer.—
W hat they were doing was probably with a view
to the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, un-
der the efftet of striae future alarm, or to afford
them a precedent and pretext for that tneasore,
whenever the people-should hereafter come for-
ward, as he trusted they would, and cover the
House with petitions for reform. He trusted the
people, notwithstanding the threats of Ministers,
would resort to the measures which had provok-
ed the vengeance of Ministers last year. He
trusted the people of England would not be de-
terred from meeting for tlie purpose of that re=
form, of which they had, by the machinations of
Ministers, been hitherto deprived. He hoped
they would not petition Parliament in classes of
wenty merely, hut in bodies of an hundred, tens
of hundreds, thousands, atid tens of thousands.—

Lie would have them spew his Majesty's Ministers
they were not afraid of their Bills, but would
meet in spite of them, till they obtained that re-
form they were determined upon having. He ex-
horted them never to cease meeting, and demand-

ng a constitutional reform, until it was conce(

ed to thew.
their time.

He would not trespass further upon
lie ret►►rned ►hem thanks for ►he in-

dnlgenee with which they had listened to him.--
His heart and hand teere with them, and he
should always most willingly, as far as his humble
abilities would enable hint, devote himself to their
rause, and promote their endeavours to extort

front Government that Parliamentaty reform so
essentially necessary to restore the Constitution of
the country to its ancient purity.
Mr, WOoLFR said, he stood forward on the
present occasion to second the resolutions which
had been just submitted to their approbation, and
he did so with feelings of exultation. It was
to him a subject of •proud gratification to see
so many persons assembled together to celebrate
what might aptly be called the signal defeat of
Ministers in their last ministetial campaign against
the rights and liberties of the people. At this
pet iod last year, Ministers sere full in arms against
the people, ranging their forces in every direction,
and attempting to assume such an aspect, as it
they thought the Gorgon of ministerial terrors
would frightetievery one from the field, or excite
the fear that, if any one ,should have the hardi-
hood to remain, the halter, the gibbet, or some
other expedient, would terminate his career.
Sir FRANCIS BURDETT stated, that his faiend,
Major Cartwright had not been able to attend
there that day ; but,that he had sent his mite to

promote the object of the Meeting ; accompanied
by a letter, which he begged to be read.
Mr. CLCARY received the letter from the Ho-
nourable Baronet, and standing on the table read
it to the company.-
The writer began by maintaining- that Parlia-
ment had not the power to suspend, at any time,or
tinder any circumstances,- the liberties of English-
men. This assertion he did not make on the fact
of the House of Commons not being the f:►ir re.
presentation of the people, but on much broader
tound,; for although the Parlament might
have been ever so well constituted; and al-
though the House of Commons wet e the true
representatives of tl►e people, still they could have
no authority to suspend their liberties for a
single moment, because the people were a power
greater than their delegates. A set of interior

magistrates might as well attempt to st►Lpend the
power of the Court ut King's Bench, and that
Court in its turn might as %veil try to suspend the
authority of the Parliament. As no power then
could suspend a higher power, so that Of Portia-

Inellt COlll4l not suspend the rights of the people.
The only pretence inr doing (Lis was neces44y,
which is ahlays the tyrant's plea--a necessity

which none of the men in power thought fit to
explain. The letter, which was very long, con-
,rained a variety of other arguments to the same
effect ; and before it was half read :hrough, the
company became impatient, and desired that the
letter might be printed. This was assented to,
and Mr. Cleary sat down, intimating to the com-
pany that their wish should be complieq with.
Sir F. ButtnETT 110 W announced the wish of
Mr. Johnstone, who was one of the sufferers un-
der the Suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, to
address the meeting.—[This man, who`was one of
the persons arrested at Manchester, made out a
very long but uninteresting detail of his impri-
sonment ; as did also a Mr. Baguky, a young man,
of the same place, who thought it an act of dis-
gusting impropriety in Lord Sidtnouth to recoil)-
! mend his father to teach him for the future lessons
of loyal, y and obedience to the laws.]
The ltev. Mr. DRAPER denied that there was at
the period alluded to any necessity for the sus-,
pension of the Habeas Corpus Act ; indeed there
never was a time which authorized the introduc..
lion of the measures resorted to by Ministers.,•and
the Greet) Bag Committee.
JOSEPH MITCHELL, of Liverpool, stated the
circumstance of his having got into company with
a notorious fellow who pretended to be a friend to
liberty. This fellow was Oliver, and this man he
introduced into different parts of the country;
suppos;og him to have been equally friendly to the
cause of freedom with himself. He solemnly de-
clared that neither he, nor the friends with whom
he acted, had ever contemplated any act of trea-

son, nor had any other object in view than that
Of obtaining a Helot-in in Parliament by legal and
constitutionol Means. lie assured the meeting,
that although he had suffered the greatest hard-
ships by an imprisonment of six months, and by
being reduced to beggary, he was still as hearty
in the cause as ever.

WlLLiam CLIFF, of-Derby, next addressed the
Meeting. In May last, he said, a persim came to
his shop, and asked him to go and meet a delegate

from London ; be was induced to go, because
the man teas represented as coming from Lord
Cochrane and others. Ile went and saw the man
at an inn—the man was Oliver.—They entered

into conversation, in the course of which, Oliver
said it was of no use to petition for a Parliament-
ary Reform, and that the people of the country
were ready to rise up, and obtain the reform by
fle*(Nir. C.) threw cold water on all that