Star.
London, England, 1820-03-18 00:00:00

his part, he must commence by stating his peculiar
satisfaction that this case came to be tried before a
Special Jury of the County of York. Lookiii& to I
the qucstioa which war, to be tried in a constittt-
fo-al point of view, and on public grounds, it was
eacueding,ly desirable that the parties accused should
be arraigned before a Jury that could not possibly
be affected by local or personal' prejudices. If he!
had. an important cause to decide, he knew no set of
men before whom he would sooner hitie it discussed
than before an enlighteneZ and experienced Jury of
that County ; the Gentlemen of which had long held
a high and proud eharatter for entertaining a pro-
per sense of public chity and of private honour. On
the part, therefore, of the prosecution, as well as on
that of the defendants, he was perfectly satisfied with
the choice that.h;:d been made. It gave hire an op-
portunity of addressing men wholly unprejudiced,
who were devoid of any local feelings, and would
give way to no impression, save those which arose
from the case itself, as it should be hereafter deve-
loped. They must be aware that the charge arose
out of transactions which took place in the month
of August last, and in the county of Lancaster.—
The parties were 'accused of having convened a
Meeting at Manchester, the object of which was to
excite fear and terror in the minds of his Majesty's
subjects : this was the short description of the crime
alleged against the defendants. The ciicumstances
which occurred at the time. of the Meeting were
matter of evidence, and would throw considerable
light on the projects of those who took part in the
proceedings. The individuals who appeared before
them as defendants, were singled out as having been
among the leaders of those who assembled an the
Meeting alluded to. 'With respect to Public Meet-
ings in general, it was requisite for him to say a few
words in the outset, as to his conception. of what
constituted a legal assembly in this country. It was
undoubtedly the privilege of the People of England,
stating the proposition in a broad and unqualified
manner, when they suffered uader any grievance, to
assemble at a Public Meeting, and to pursue a law-
ful mode of address. But the Meeting in question
was not of this description: it was of a nature un-
known to the Conititution. In former times it was
customary for counties, towns, districts, or particular
Classes of individuals, united by one common interest
in tie pursuit of one common object, to meet toge-
ther. Thus, for instance, where a particular trade
was affected by a particular law, the parties interested
met to petition for its repeal. If a particular class of
persons were oppressed by any grievance, they also
assembled together to petition for its removal. If a
-Lord-Lieutenant, •or the high-Sheriff of a County,
was informed that the Freeholders had to complain
of something that operated against their interests, the
practice of the Constitution enabled him to call a
-fleeting for the purpose of petitioning either the
'Throne or the Parliament. But he never had heard
;ft stated by any Lawyer, and he trusted he should

never hear it decided; that it was a right, sanctioned
..iither" by the Law or Constitution of this land,
frier- any- person who pleased to call all the People
of England together in one place, there to dis-
tu;s political measures, and to lay down particu-
lar modes by which they might obtain redress.—
He would now proceed to notice the different indi-

•-viduals who were charged in the indictment. Of,
-Mr. Hunt it was unnecessary that he should say any-i
tiling, because his name had appeared so much of
late connected with the,e transactions, as to leave no
doubt on the mind of any man as to his character
arid avocations. The others were more obscure ;
__

they were very little known, and he should, there
fore, state who they were, premising that they were
charged with assembling, and inciting others to as-
semble, to disturb the public peace. John Knight
kad formerly been in business ; his occupation had
latterly been that of an itinerant orator. Joseph
Johnson was a brush-maker, residing in or near
Mandhester, and he believed was also in the habit of
attending Public Meetings. Of John Saxton all the
description which he had was, that he was some
way or other connected with the Office of a Paper
called the Manchester Observer. Joseph Healey was
an apothecary. James Moorhouse was a coachmas-
ter, residing at Stockport. George Swift carried on
the business of a shoemaker, at Manchester. Of Ito-.
bent Wilde he knew nothing, but that he lived near
.Ashton-under-Line. Samuel Bamford and Robert
Jones were individuals in humble circumstances.—
The Jury would find, by unquestionable evidence,
that these persons were connected in some sort of
secret design. lie would be able to shew the course
which the parties respectively took when he called
his evidence, and, therefore, it was not necessary for
hm; at that moment, to state the specific acts of
each ; it would be sufficient to give a general view
of their proceedings. To begin, then, with Mr.
Hunt. It appealed, tlta, some time in the month
of June, in the last year, a Public Meeting took
place in Smithfield ; lie knew not by whom it was
assembled, nor was it of any consequence. It created,
however, considerable alarm in the Metropolis.—
Ile alluded to this Meeting, of which Mr. Hunt was
the had, as the probable cause of his being subse-
quently invited to preside at a Meeting at Manchester.
It appeared, that on the 9th of August, a Meeting
was projected to be held by the people of Manchester,
for the puipose of considering public grievances, and
discussing the question of Parliamentary Reform,"
and also to elect'a Representative, to be returned by
themselves, to-sit in Parliament. This was a mea-
sure which no man 'could contend fell short of the
highest misdemeanour which could be committed..—
le was a denial of the authority of all law, and an,
interference vrith the'prerogative of the King him-self,'
-,cithaut whissisaaction, from the earliest periods, no
Fersims- had the right to return Members to Parlia-
ment. • On'. the lith day of August, Mr. Htint ar-
rived. att'a plite ailed' Bullock-smithy, about nine
wiles lion) Maitehitter, and three miles from Stock-
port. - Ile *as here joined by 'Moorhouse, who took
him to StociPoitt; and on the Morning* of the 9th
they %vete. jOinei 'by: Johnson: The party made. a
protress tofiarlCS frhnehester, aecompa
eet, nied by Sir,
M
Charles Wolselerand Others: The notice of a
14 at Malichester'tbd, it 'seemed, attracted the at
"cation of the -Magisiiatet; and the Meeting was pro-
Litiited by theriv.-' By' their Orders,' placards were
satek up- in the town • Stating that the People were
fled upon ter do a thing highly illegal. Mr. Hunt,
ivappeared, was extremely atvy at this-pinhibitiOn,
or rather as die-conduct of those Who were to' Have
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