The Sun.
London, England, 1842-08-15 00:00:00

OLDHAM.

FRIDAY EYES N G.---At an early hour this M
a large mob hell a meeting on Curzon Ground, Old-
ham ; and; after a person of the name of Yardle. had
addressed the crowd respecting the value of labour,
the mob went to I•?ochdale, and the Rochdale mob
-proceeded to Todmorden, and -stopped all the mills.
All the coal miners have struck work, and are stop-
ping the colliers in the adjacent districts.
ROCHDALE & NEIGHBOURHOOD
About nine o'clock on Thursday morning, the mob
arrived at Oldham-road, on its way to Royton to
Rochdale. Many of the factories are situated in this
place, on account of its nearness to the canal. Mr.
Sutcliffe and Messrs. Hoyle and Livesay 'were iirst
summoned to turn out their men, and stop the mills,
with which order they complied immediately, as it
would have been unavailing to have made any attempt
to contend against 5,000 or 6,000 people. INIr. Ash-
worth, the. Magistrate, met the people here, and tried
to stop them in their course, but it was 411 to no
purpose. They faithfully promised him not to break
the peace, and assured him their object was not-
plunder. They were willing to work, they said,
and that all they wanted was a fair day's wages for
a fair day's work. Mr. Brierley was then or-
dered to stop his mill ; when he asked his visitors
what their object was in stopping all their mills, they
replied, that they wanted the wages they had
in 1840. Here the hands were turned out.
The next mill they came to was Mr. Holt's, who had
the gates locked, but informed them that he had
stopped working. This was not deemed satisfactory,
as in all other cases they pulled the plug out of the
boiler, and turned the water into the fire. A number
of persons immediately climbed over the gates, and
knocked out the plug, which would soon extinguish
the fire. The mob then went to Mr. Hoyle's corn-
mill, and informed the men that they must keep at
work, as they would want some corn before the next
week. They paid the saw-mill company a visit; but,
as a high-pressure engine is used here, it was not
deemed safe to pull the plug : the fire was put out,
and the steam let off by opening the valve. Messrs.
Butterworth and Heape, Messrs. Radcliffe, and Mr.
Shore's mills were stopped, as well as every other
kind of workshop in Oldham-road, when the mob
came down into the town, and ordered the
men out of the mills of Messrs. Chadwick, Messrs.
Kelsall and Bartlemore, Messrs. Lomax, Mr. Robert
Kelsall, Messrs. Pagon and Ogden, Messrs. Procter
and Brothers, and Mr. Howard. When the mob came
do Am Drake-street, itis supposed that they were about
15,000 persons. They were led up by females, eight
or ten abreast, singing some lively song, and Mr. Geo.
Ashworth, the Magistrate, on horseback, in the midst
of the procession, ready to check any excess or breach
of the peace that might take place. Messrs. Pilling
and Biaerley were the only persons who turned out
their men before the mob arrived ; but, as they had not
emptied the boilers, a number of men entered the pre-
mises and pulled out the plugs. - The shopkeepers in
various parts of the town gave or threw loaves to
.the crowd. Having thus stopped the mills in the
town, ,the mob proceeded to Cronkeyshaw, to Mr.
John Bright's factory, . and demanded the release ,
of the hands, which -was complied with. A meet-
ing was then held en the moor, which was ad•
dressed by several individuals ; and it. was resolved,
that there should he another meeting on Cronkeyr
shave, at seven o'clock 4n the evening, to lay down
21--aaa 'r -Suture_ operatio— . A _nartsaaaaa then di..
missed to Whitworth and Facet, to stop all the mills
in that part. The mills. of Messrs. Leach and
Tweedale, Healey-hall ; Messrs. Thomas Holland and
Son, Tunnicliffe ; and Mr. Charles Haigh's, Broadley,
were stopped, and the plugs pulled out. Another
party was dismissed to Hooley Clough and Heywood,
for-the same purpose. It was intended to go to
Bacup;and Burnley. • The shops remained elos:A. all
day on Thursday.
*Every iron foundry and workshop, where men were
employed, received a visit from the "plug dragoons,"
as they are here called, and had strict injunctions to
leave off work. There were a number of men at work
at St. Mary's Church ; but they were compelled to.
desist as the crowd passed through Cheetham-street.
Masons, bricklayers, joiners, mechanics, and every kind
of operatives, struck work, and joined the mass of
the people as they passed from mill to mill. Every
shop was closed; and remained so; with few exceptions,
during Thursday.- Several of the 'provision shops.
handed loaves of bread to the mob in the:streets, which
they devoured like hungry wolves., Other shopkeepers
collected morey, and gave it to the ringleaders, who
immediately went and purchased bread, which they
divided amongst their followers. •• In one or two in-
stances, loaves were taken without leave by some
Young lads ; but this conduct was not tolerated by the
leaders. Several gentlemen gave them money very
liberally, which in all cases was spent in bread for
those who had come a great distance. About fifty
women went into Tweeddale's Hotel, and were treated
with a good dinner and plenty. to drink, for which
they were extremely grateful, being at a distance from
home. In the afternoon, a man made a wager that
he would carry a loaf of bread on a stick, up York-
shire atreet, without being molested ; but he had ad-
vanced very few yards before it was carried off by the
crowd, and devoured.

At 'seven o'clock in the evening, a meeting was
held on Cronkeyshaw, near Mr. Bright's old factory.
The speakers were Charles Howorth, a mechanic
named Ashley, (operatives), two strangers, and Mr.
Thomas Livsey. There could not be fewer than
7,000 persons present, one-fourth of whom were
females. -One of the- speakers said he never could
take part 'against the manufacturers, who were in as
bad a Situation' as the workmen. The• landowners
had made a law to prevent them exchanging-their
goods for corn, whereby they were as much under
aristocratic oppression as the poorest man among
• them..: He hoped they would do all in their power
for the repeal-of the Corn-laws, awl he trusted the
middle class would assist them to procure the charter,
which would be a remedy for all the evils that the'
working man had to complain of. The aristocracy
united for the :protection of their land ; let the
poor man follow their example, and protect
the wages of labour. Sir Robert Peel was
intending to prorogue. - Parliament on Friday,
in order to go a shooting ; hut, if he was not
mistaken, he would have to call them together again
very soon to stop shooting. A resolution was passed,
that the meeting should adjourn till five o'clock on
Friday morning, when the duties of the day would be
laid before them. All the speakers, without excep-
tion, implored them not to commit a breach of the
Peace, and by all means to respect the rights of pro-
perty. He cautioned .them.to beware, as they had
spies amongst ththem.A. blue bottle he said, dressed
as a collier, went with • the --party on Wednesday, to
Shaw, Royton, and Bunage, and, having assisted-
them in all their proceedings, eame.. and gave infor-
mation to a Rochdale .Magi trate at night. The
meeting broke up at half-past
.eight o'clock.--On
Friday morning.,- there was another gathering at the
same place, at five o'clock. • The meeting was com-
menced •by singing a'.; hymn, when a female ad-
dressed, in a Very ti ut at ed manner, the assem-
bled multitude. She - wns a -teetotaller, and ad-
vised them to shun the ale-house, - and, look to their
wives and •families. She conspired, the poor
of the land to Christ, who was oeserted in the
day of tribulation by the rich and- wealthy of the
world, and who chose the poor fisherman of Galilee
to preach his doctrines, and to send glad tidings into
tke. hearts of thousands. The state shepherds, dressed
in fine linen, whose object was to fleecethem, never
could he considered as the ;epresentatives of the poor.
fishermen of old. She went on in this strain for
some time. By six o'clock the crowd had -increased
to 3,000 or 4,000, when they broke up,, and sot off to
Bunn. It is supposed that,. after having pulled out
the plugs there, they will return through Todmorden,
and accomplish the businessin that place. At eight
o'clock on Friday morning,' a party of 500. or 600 -
marched into Rochdale frog: Heywood;• but, finding
themselves. too late to loin the .Bacup party, they.
advanced to Black Pits (tlneemiles from -Rochdale),.
a mill beloni7ing to,Mr. -Tamer, of Haslingden, with.
the intention of turning cut the hands. During.
Thursday n;ght everything vent off very peaceably.