Star.
London, England, 1820-04-06 00:00:00

•

-ASSIZES.-

LANCASTER.
TRIAL OF KNIGHT, DEWHURST, AND OTHER&
SZOOND RAT-lIIONDAY, APRIL 3.

The Court met this morning between nine and ten
o'clock ; and the names of the Jurors having been
called over,
Mr. WILLIAMS observed to the Court, that he
feared he had on Saturday spoken with too much
diffidence on the law as to the right of the people to
carry arms in self-defence. He now stated broadly,
that the people had the right, and it was only the ill
use of them that could constitute a crime. He feared
that it might be looked upon as an abandonment of
duty, that he had not urged this matter more strongly.
Mr. Justice BAYLEY...4 cannot consider that per-
sons have a right to go armed in that way in con-
templation of an attack.
The examination of witnesses for the defence was
now proceeded in. .
John Cross, examined by Mr. Wir.mtssa.--Has known Flet-
cher from a child. Sew him three or four weeks after the Man-
chester Meeting, and he then asked the witness if he bad his
pike ready, for it would soon be wanted?
Mr. Justice BALTLEY.—I do not think this is admissible, but
I will take a note of it, and wish you to state the nature of the
evidence. _ _ .

Wtr.t.tasts.—We propose to thew, by this witness, that
Fetcher was in the habit of inciting and soliciting people to arm
tlirmsriv.s; and, therefore, those who attilleed the Meeting
might have been induced to do so at his instigation, instead of
that of the defendants, as charged by the indictment.
After some observations from the prosecutor's Counsel,
John Cross was called again.—Fletcher told me the pikes
were preparing. I said I did not believe there was such a. thing.
lie told me he could take me to where there were plenty. '
James Chadwick was called, as stated by Mr. Courstair, to
prove violent expressions used by Fletcher against the Govern-
mein ; but Mr. Justice BAYLEY thought it was not admissible
evidence. _ _

Mr. W. Lees, watchmaker, was at the place of Meeting be-
fore the people arrived. Saw them come in with music and
colours, not different from Orange Meetings. Saw no arms. The
Meeting was conducted with peace and order. Heard an alarm
after knight arrived, but it was soon peaceable. There were no
seditious or inflammatory expressions used by knight, hut he
exhorted them to peace, anti rather to accept an insult than to
offer' one.

Cross-examined by Mr. RAINF..—Ue had the llaslingdon flag
at his house for three or four days, with the inscription, " Tlidu
wast covered with anger, and persecuted us. Thou hast slain,
and bath not pitied us. Cursed he their anger, for it was fierce;
aml their wrath, for it was criel."
Ilawarth, was at the Hui-Idr)- Meeting; went about one
o'clock, Lefore the large body came. in. They came in civilly.
Knight arrive. %Vent within about ten yards of ,the bust-
it-gs ; heard al.trni of Military, once before Knight came, and
once after. Did not see any pikes or pistols en either occasion.
Coild hear distinctly all that was said; nothing was said about
overthrowing tht: 6 •ernment, or all rising in one day. 'When
the secoml alarm was givaa, ir. Knight put out his band, and
said,' B still ; I can see the danger befere you—be peaceable,
a•td keep good order." This was repeatedly said, and he told
them to °rto home peaceably, shortly before he came from the
hustings. Everytlibig was peaceable, except when the report
was made of the &Mk/ s.

Cross-examined by Mr. Scrjeant CROSS.—T. am a weaver at
14eslitigdon. Dit.t.not go with fees. There mitht be about 200,
ar.l only one tag. I dia.not beton; to them. They might nteet
at a rood to arrarge the r*lteting. I went across the country;
and got to the btfore the people arrived. Did not see
items on the flans.
-James Onnrod Atkir,:on.—l an a shoemaker.- I got to the
Meeting about one o'clocl, and stopped until it was over; was
near the hustings, and could hear evcri word the speakers said.
I did not hear an expression about overthrowing the Govern-
ment. There wa: sornetl,'.ng said about their rising in one day
to petition the Frince Regent about a law that wens to issue.—
The speakers wished the people to be peaceable, and not to give
°M ice to any one. This was given at the beginning and at
the end of the business.

Crossexamined by 'Mr. RAXYF.—I dad not remember what
was en the flag, or whether there was " Order, Love, and
Unity." " The King and his Throne shall be established."
From Sidmouth's bloody black coats, and from the Yeo-
manry Cavalry at Manchester: from all oppressors to the poor
aid needy." I will swear I did not know or believe there was
aoy thing or the sort: T do not know that there was on others
" egret Charts," " Heery Hunt, Esq."
To qua e ions from Mr. Justice Reveze.—l was there when.
the ?tarn, of the soldiers was given before Knight came. It did
net ioduce ire to move away; I could see a great part of the
p_ rile, and t'eese who were in front of the beatings. I did not
se!', any pike:, or pistols, or staves. I never saw a pike in my life;
ty had ricks like walking.sticks ; I think •if any pikes had
been preducesi near the hustings, I should have seen them, and
nose were produced in my sight ; I heard a single report of a
pistol as I was going away ; it appeared to be at a distance from
the crowd; /did nut see the smoke.
Vim. Montgomery.—l was at the Meeting before Mr.
Knight arrived, and stopped until it was oeer. There was a
rue, end I was carried back nine or ten yard:. When the
seeakirg was going on, I was near enough to hear what was
said. Nething was seid about overthrowing the Government. The
speakers frequently desired them to be quiet, and to give no
offence to any one: and just before the Meeting broke up Mr.
Enieht desired th:m to be peaceable and quiet, and in no
sense of the word to give ofemee. 'nitre Wl3 no riot or offence
given to any ore.
Cross-examined.—Ore Petrick Hughes who was hanged was
• appreherded at my house : he wail working for rue at my loorr.:
be concealed himself in toy cellar. Remembers'* Annual Par.
U:eversal Suiirag', and Election by Ballot." I was
charged with embezzlement, but got rid of it at the Quarter
Seaaiens. .
'r. Justice Darter qt Motioned the witness, and he said he did
not hear anything about riving or nutting all in ore day.
Robert llowarth.—l am a weaver. was at the Sleeting at
lieveraharn Eaves, and went veld: the sactesion, and stopped
tel the Meeting was over, and was about 15 yards or from that
to 30. Heard the speeches and Resolutions: nothing about
overthrowing the Government. They said they wished the peo-
ple to be peaceable and quiet, and in good order, and not to mo-
Lee no one in the least. No disturbance except the alarms.
Cruss-ezenitneth—No pike-handles were found at my pre-
mises, but a %haft belengieg to a loom.. 'I here was on a flag,
Open dr: mouth and judge rightiously, and plead the.cause
of the poor and needy." " Magna Charts, Bill of Rights,!
Henry Hunt, Esq. Liberty or Death." On another, " No
torn Laws." On the first flag was, " Black Moss Reformers."
" Thou shalt do no murder." " Universal Suftlag•o" " An-
neal Parliaments." " Vote by Ballot." I don't know what
any of these arc. Saw a figure of a woman holding a child, but
whether it was witkout a head I cannot tell.
In answer to Mr. Justice Beyezri—The liege were furled up
before Knight came. Did not hear anything about a rising or
Dleeting all en one day. Saw no sticks, or pikes, or pistols. I
was carried off five or six yartlkby the people on the first alarm.
James Pollard, weaver, near Colne.—Went to the Meeting with
the procession; was at backside of hustbies ; afterwards changed
my situation to the front, and was five or six yard* off. Could
hear what was said; no word about overthrowing the Govern-
ment. The speakers exhorted the people to be peaceable, and
to beware of spies, who would endeavuur to alarm the people,
and create disturbance. This was frequently done; and betore
they separated they.evere advised to go home peaceably.
• Crosa-examinerthlright set the words " No Tyranny," and
also the name of !lent.
. Mr. Justice Baxhay.—l remember that it was said, if
the habeas Corpus Act was suspended, the. people were all to
meet on one day throughout the kingdom to send a petition to
the Prince Regent, that the Habeas Corpus suspension might
sot pass into a law.
William Dyson, of Rough Leigh, got to the ground about
otde o'clock ; went alien his calr4dren, who had cheated him, to
send them home. Heard Mr. .Knight MU the people to keep
race and quietness.
Cress-examined.—thews Witham; has been there to read
newspapers. Never wentwith Witham for the Rough Leigh flag.
Here the case for the defendants closed.
Mr. RAINS (in the absence of -Mr. Scarlett) now
rose to repll,. The prehelit case, • he .9bearved, was

one of as grave and serious a ratwe ak he had ever
met in the course of his professio&itareer—one; of
which, should the Jury be induced, by the specious
arguments of Counsel on the other side, to acquit the
defendants, they would soon findethe standard, not
.only of sedition, but of rebellion, ria:wed in every part
of the kingdom, and from the government of the
laws we should be reduced to a state worse than bar-
barism. The Jury bad -heard from the Learned
Counsel, on the other side, an invective against the
immense length of the present indictment, which he
had termed unblushing ; but that Learned Gentle-
man well knew that such a length was unavoidable,
from the nature of the charge, and must be so in all
such cases. He (Mr. Williams) had also complained,
that some of the prisoners had first been accused of
High Treason ; but that now the prosecutors had
shifted their grounds. It had been so, and certainly
its first appearance was that of High Treason. In its
present shape, it came as near to it as possible ; and
if some of the words proved to have been used had
been followed by any overt act, the case would have
assumed the character of High Treason. However,
the case of High Treason was properly given up,
and he now stated to the Jury, that the proseLutorJ
also gave up the charge of Conspiracy, which was in
the indictment, though he was certain that abundaut.
evidence had been laid before the Learned Counsel
who drew the indictment, to warrant his drawing it
as he had done. The points"to which the Jury would
have to direct their attention were, the illegality of
the Meeting, and the conduct of the defendants. It
had been said, on the part of the defendants, that
numbers alone did not render a Meeting illegal. He
would-net take that proposition without some quali-
fication, because Meetings, even for the most lawful
purpose, might be in such numbers as to have a ten-
dency to riot, and to create alarm. But not only,
according to the Learned Counsel for the defendants,
might Meetings assemble in any numbers, but they
might also go armed. It might, indeed, be true, as
laid down by Mr. Justice Blackstone, that persons
had a right to have arms for self-defence ; but he
denied that such a right was anywhere mentioned
as that of g:ing to Public Meetings armed, or that
any such right existed. The Learned Counsel then
proceede4 to comment upon the evidence as it af-
fected each of the defendants ; and, in the conclusion,
he admitted that there was not sufficient evidence as
against the defendants Wade and Astin. Ile should
also observe, that the only thing which had been
proved against Adamson was the fact of his having
been on the hustings with a Cap of Liberty.
Mr. Justice BAYLEY, at about four o'clock, began
to sum up to the Jury. He commenced by entreat-
ing them to dismiss from their minds any, feeling of
prejudice which they might have imbibed on the
subject of the present prosecution, and to let their
verdict- rest upon the evidence which was before
them, and upon that alone. Such should ever be
the conduct of a British Jury; and if, with those
feelings, the defendants should be acquitted, they
would admit they had a fair trial; if, on the other
hand, they should be convicted, they must feel that
it was only from the force of evidence. The two
charges to which the Jury should confine their at-
tention were—first, that the defendants and others
had unlawfully assembled for the purpose of exciting
disaffection, &c.—and the second was, that they had
assembled to the common terror and alarm of his
Majesty's liege subjects. His Lordship then pro-
ceeded to lay down the la* upon both these points,
nearly in the same terms as those he used in address-
ing the Jury at the recent trials in York. To con-
stitute an unlawful assembly, it was not necessary
that any riot.or disturbance should take place. The
mere assembling with offensive weapons was, in
some instances, held to constitute an unlawful Meet-
ing. Any large body of persons coming together,
under such circumstances as to excite terror and
alarm, would be an unlawful assembly. Coming
armed to.remedy a common grievance, would also
be illegal. In looking at the present Meeting, the
Jury might be of Opinion that the object of the
great body assembled was lawful, and their intention
innocent; but if there were any amongst them who
%V ishcd.to give a wrong turn to those intentions, the
Meeting, as far as they were concerned, would be
unlawful, and they %•ottld be guilty, though allthe
others might be innocent. It some persons 'went
aimed to the Meeting, in the expectatig-n of attack,
and determined to make resistance, they would Le
acting illegally ; and vrey person who saw them there,
and remained afterwards, would also be acting ille-
gally. In the same manner, if any persons went to
the Meeting, not knowing that there were to be any'
inflammatory speeches, or flags with inflammatory
inscriptions, or any persons armed, and that they
afterwards saw such flags and arms, end heard such
speeches, and yet continued at the Meeting; they.
would also be acting illegally. With respect to the,
terror which the-Meeting was calculated to excite,
he thought it would be one of immediate danger;
but if the Jury should think the danger from the
Meeting was remote, or only of a future rising, they
would give a special verdict to that effect; as his
mind was not perfectly made up as to that being,
the kind of tenor which would render the Meeting.
illegal. He had no hesitation in saying, that a Meet-
ling on the subject of bringing persons who had com-
mitted crimes to justice, was a legal one, but, sitting
there, fie did not judicially know who those Were
who had committed crimes such as had been alluded
to. Until he had judicial knowledge of the pro-
ceedings at the Manchester Meeting he-could give
no opinion on it. They might be perfectly innocent
who caused its dispersion, or they might be guilty.:
He could not now decide; but, if ever the subject
tame judicially before him, he should be prepared i
to give his opinion on it. He agreed in the opi-
nion, that numbers alone did not render a Meet-
ing illegal ; there should be some circumstances
attending their assembling that were calculated to
inspire terror, before ft could be so deemed.—
If he saw a large assembly,. consisting of men only,
be might perhaps apprehend danger, but he could
pot have the same feeling if it were mixed of men,
women, and children. Re could not concur with
the Learned Counsel for the defendants in the state-
ment, that people had a tight to arm as he bail de-
scribed. He admitted that any man might have
arms suitable to his rank, but pikes were not this
descriptiOn; and in point of law,'.he had no diffi-
culty in saying, that the people had no right.to carry
arms to a Ilublic Meeting! because thT might con-
template being attacked: Such carryinof arms was

o.

At. • 1.4.