Star.
London, England, 1820-04-05 00:00:00

. . .
ASSIZES.

LANCASTZR, MARCH 3C.
The Crown Court met this morning at niol o'clock,
and was occupied till past six in the afternoon, in
hearing various charges of felony; of these the fol-
lowing were the only ones which excited anpMei est:
Thomas Neville, aged 20, was put tq bar,
charted with feloniously administering certain por-
tions of arsenic, mixed with food, to Nancy Neville.
his mother, to Isabella Neville, Maria Neville, and
Grace Sharpless, his sisters, with intent to kill them;
and he was also charged with a misdemeanour in
mixing up poison in human food. •
Mr. ADDISON, who stated the case to the Jury,'
observed, after having gone through the heads of
the evidence, which we give under, that he would
put a witness into the box, who would prove a de-
claration of the prisoner made to him, in which it
appeared his object *as to have poisoned his sister
Priscilla, who, however, had not partaken of any of
the article in questidn. if this should appear, the
Jury must acquit the prisoner on the capital indict-
ment, none of he parties having died, unless indeed
the Jury should be of opinion that there was proof
of a felonious intent against the other sisters. It
was proved by M. Corker that he had sold a pound
of arsenic to a person named Crook. Crook proved
having retailed half an ounce of it to Nancy Neville,
the mother of the prisoner.
Nancy Neville deposed to her having, expended si
part of the half-ounce in the destruction of mice,
and of having left the rest in a paper an the mantle.,
shelf, on Saturday the 4th of September, 1819. She
'sent her son for tea, meal, sugar, and flJur, and
John Gre proved the delivery of those articles
to him. This witness lad known the prisoner for
some time; believed him to be of weak intellect, but
not in such a state as not to know the difference of
poisoning. He had always been an excellent son and
good brother ; carried ail his earnings to his mother
and sisters. Witness did h' sr that prisoner had had
a quarrel with his sister Priscilla, but did not know
this of his own knowledge. He knew him to have
been more like a father than a 'son or brother to his
family: •
Isabella Neville and the Jther sisters (exceptP'riscilla),
and the brother-in-law, proved that tea was made,
and some of the sugar put into it. Prisoner had
been before this in the pantry, where the sugar was
first placei. None of them could say whether pri-
soner saw them putting in the sugar. It had been
for a short time on the shelf where the arsenic was.
None of them could say whether some of the arsenic
might not have been scattered about OK the shelf.—
Prisoner refused to take any of the tea when made.
All the witnesses concurred in stating that he was
of an excellent disposition, very fond of all his
sisters, and much beloved by them. The mother
stated that he never appeared to grudge his earnings,'
and she was not aware of there being anything to
sour his temper, except that he was slaving for
them all.
On a re-examination of prisoner's mother, she said
that herself and some of her daughters were poorly,
after taking some of the tea. Next day they all, ex-
cept Priscilla and the prisoner, took some of the tea;
and, on its making them ill again, some neighbour
said it ought to be shewn to a doctor. The mother
had previously found some white sediment in the
bottom of the cups. She put some of the sugar into
water, and observed a white matter like chalk fall
to the bottom.
Prisoner himself took the sugar to a doctor, told
him the effect it had on his family, and that they
were all poorly. He brought home some medkine
for them, which the doctor had given him.
Mr. James Rickless, a surgeon, residing near
Blackburn, wen; at the request of the prisoner, to
see the family ; !Tom the pains in the bowels, swollen
eye-lids, and parched mouth, he concluded they had
taken some strong poison. On submitting the sugar
which prisoner had brought him to the usual test, he
found. it was mixed up with equal parts of arsenic.
This, in his opinion, could not have been the effect
of accident. It might have been ground, it was so
well mixed up. Prisoner took home some medicines'
to his family, and appeared to feel for their situation.
All the family recovered.
John Corker saw the prisoner soon after he was in
custody, and witness having said, " You had better
tell the truth," prisoner said—
Here Mr. Justice BAYLEY interfered to stop the
witness. As what he had said to him was under the
impression of a hope. of pardon, the law held it could
not be urged in evidence against him.
There being no other evidence to bring the fact
home to the prisoner, he was acquitted. He was
then given in charge on the misdemeanour, but only
the same evidence could be offered, and be was ac-
quitted. The prisoner appeared to labour under coi-
siderable alarm during the whole of the trial.
George Ileartley, aged fifty, was put to the bar,
charged with intermarrying with Ellen Grundy, *1
widow, his former wife, Mary Gibson, ()therm*
Heartley, being then alive.
It appeared from the evidence of the Rev. William
Harrison, a Presbyterian Clergyman of Knockbreda,
in the County of Down, in Ireland, that the prisoner
was married by witness's father, in 1811, in the above
named parish, according to the rites of the Presby.
terian Church in Ireland, prisoner and his wife being
then belonging to that sect. It appeared further,
from the parish register of Prestwich-cum-Oldham,'
that prisoner and Mrs. Grundy were united at that
place in 1816 ; that she knew of his former marriage'
soon afterwards, but took no steps in the matter till
within a few months.
The Counsel for the prisoner endeavoured to esta-
blish, that the onnriage in 1811 was:not a valid one,
but the Court overruled the objection. The.prisoner
was convicted, and was ordered to account on oath
for some of Mrs. Grundy's property to-morrow (Fri•
day) before receiving sentence.
SATURDAY, APRIL 1.--BURNLEY MEETING.
TIM KING V. KNIGHT, DZWHURST, AND SIX OTHERS.
The Court met this morning at nine o'clock, soon II
after which John knight, Gcorge Dewhurst, Nathan
Broadhurst, John Adamson, William Fktcher, John
Bury, John Astin, and James Week, were put to the
bar, and the indictment being read to them, they se-
verally pleaded—Not Guilty.
Mr. LITTLEDALS stated the nature of the indict-
ment to the Jury, which contained 21 counts ; the
substance of which was, that the prisoners had con-
spired to go, and cause others of the liege subject►

:. . •
of the late Ring to go, artned, to a, Meeting fur the'
purpose Of hindering and obstruCting the Magistrates
and Peace-officers.in the execution of their duties.—
fratso charged them with assembling an unlawful
meeting, armed with swords, pikes, st;tves, fire arms,
Scc. and of attending at the same, to the terror of
the liege subjects of the late King, on the 15th of
N:.)vember last, at Habergau Eves, in the county of

Lancaster.
Mr. SCMILETT stated the case to the Jury. Ile
said, Le should not enter into any extraneous matter
to chew that the objects of those who convened the
Meeting were unlawful, or .that they lute:hied to
adopt proceedings different from what they professed.
It would be quite sufficient for his purpose to rely on
the circumstance that the people went to this Meet-
ing armed. That circumstance alone was quite suf-
ficient to constitute it an unlawful Meeting, whatever
might. be its avowed or intended object. He then
-proceeded to state the evidence he should adduce to
fix the several delenJants with the conspiracy charged
in the indictment. —The first witness called was
W. Chaffer, examined by Mr. Rana.—He stated that he was
a constable of Burnley ; that a notice of meeting had been pla-
carded for the Bth of .*:,,vember, but it was afterwaids adver-
tised for the 15th ; that in the threnoon of that day large parties
arrived at Burnley, preceded e.y music, with banners, and pro-
ceeded through the town, to the pia ;e of meeting, where hust-
ings were erected for the speAcers ; that as they were passing
through the town, Colot:el Hargreaves, who was on horseback,
dashed among the crowd, and seized a sea which appeared to
have been prepared for a pike-handle, and brought it evrey
without opposition. He supposed the numbers essernbled to
amount to 3000 or 4000. There were eigiiteer feigs and three
Cans of Liberty.
Cross-examined by Mr. WILLIAWT.—}Ie noticed several cf
the inscriptioneon the Sags : one was," Keep within compass;"
mother was, ".Order ! order !" Some of them appeared to be
religijUS mottoes, such as," A false balance is an abomination to
the LORD; but a just weight is his delight." ss.,"
Richard Fletcher stater!, that he was in company wide* than
named Wilson ; he saw several of the people wi.h staves, and
on their arriving at the ground they picked out the dirt from
the holes which were made to receive the pike-heads. He saw
several persons with pike-heads secreted under their coat-
sleeves, and under their waistcoats. He immediately left the field
to inform the Magistrates. He returned soon after, and heard
a cry, " the soldiers are coming !" whereupon a number of peo-
ple pulled out their pike-beads, and many of them fixed them in
the poles. He saw sixty persons pull out their pikes, but only
eight or ten fixed them. He also saw twenty other persons draw
out their pistols : these persons who so conducted themselets
were near to the hustings. When the alarm had subsided, they
replaced their weapons in their former concealment. The alarm
turned out to be false. Knight was nut at this time arrived.—
In about half an hour after this alarm Knight arrived, and was
voted to the Chair, when a Cap of Liberty was placed on his
head, and he addressed the assembly.. He dwelt a good deal on
the Corn Laws, and lamented that so many persons were hanged
for forgery : 'after which he read the Resolutions, and they
were approved by the Meeting. Witness could not recollect the
substance of them. While this was going on, there was a second
alarm that " the soldiers were coming !" when several of the
people again pulled out their pikes and pistols, but this also
turned out to be a false alarm, when they main Concealed them.
This alarm caused many people to run, when Knight and the'
other people on the hustings called to them to be firm, and not
to run. After Knight bad left the Chair, Dewhurst took it,
and proposed a Resciution, " That if Parliament should pass
any Gagging Bills, the Reformers should rise and meet on one
day." He said, if they did not, " he should call them the
greatest slaves upon evil-. i" . •
Cross-examined by Mr. Coeestat:.-k—He stated, that he had
applied to different people, to perchace.pi:ses for .the Burnley
Meeting. He admitted that he had a pistol, which he hid shewn
to different persons, and had boasted that he was well armed;
and would not swear that he had not d—d the Government,
and wished the Reformers were all as well armed as he was.

William Wilson, said, that he was a reed-mater, and lived at
Burnley; awl, after stating tho circumstances detailed by the last
witness, he went on to give a more detailed account of Knight's
speech, and represented hint to have said, that if the Manchester
Magistratei were not brought to justice, there was an end of
all good government, and the people had a right to destroy such
a government, or to make a new one, or to return to a state of
nature, and live without one; and he proposed a Resolution to
oppose the measures of 'Ministers, if they brought into Parlia-
ment any Bills to curtail the liberty of meeting to discuss politi-
cal subjects.
Cross-examined.—The witness stated, that he had been in the
habit of attending many 7,leetings, and bad given information to
the Magistrates respecting the Blanket Meeting. That he bad
never received any money for his services, but had expended a
good deal of money in employing other persons to go round the
country to obtain information. There was now due to him
thirty-four pounds for actual advances. That he himself bad
been tried at that Court for a capital offence, Ls the year 1508,
or 1810. He had wrote an account of the proceedings, and on
the neat day a more lengthened detail, but neither of which
were produced.
Mr. Samuel Howarth, a surgeon, residing at Burnley, stated,
that he went to the Meeting, and was there when an alarm was
.given about the soldiers, and then sr.w one pistol, but no pikes.
lie did not observe anything particular in the speech of Knight,
and all he could say in respect to Dewburst was, that he recom-
mended a subscription to be entered into to purchase News-
papers, and that the proceedings in Parliament should be closely
watched. He had some recollection that it was proposed, that
if Parliament did not redreas their wrongs, there should be a
general rising throughout the kingdom, but this he could not
state with certainty. That many of them had sticks, sucu as
they might have picked up on their way. There was rennin
in the appearsace of the people, or in the proceedings of the day,
ttat struck him with any apprehensions of immediate danger,
although he considered that it might afterwards lead to serious,
consequences.
Henry Bury and John Walton corroborated the evidence of
Fletcher and Wilson, as to the pikes and pike-staves; and Bury
added, that a party of Reformerson their way home, discharged
as many as one hundred pistols. He could not say what num-
, bee of pistols, but he heard that number of shots, in different

directions.
Christopher. Edmonton stated, that he saw Colonel Hargreaves
seize a stick, before mentioned; and at that moment saw one of
the &format, with a pistol in his hand, looking at the Colonel,
and on asking one of his companion!, " Shall I shoot ?" His
Companion answered, " No, you must not!" when he returned
the pistol iota his pocket.
Several other witnesses were then examined, corroborati'

the testimony of the former witnesses as to the character of the
Meeting. After which,
Mary Hoyle was called, who positively swore that Wade was
the man who pointed the pistol at Colonel Hargreaves, as de-
scribed by the witness Edmonson.
On cross-examination, she stated, that she was distantly re-
lated to Wade's wife, and that he (Wade) was rot living with
her, as he ought to do; and, without waiting for the question to
be put to her, she added, I have had no foul or angry lan.-
guage With him."
John Carter proved that he saw the man dew the pistol and
look at the Colonel, but neither of the prisoners was the man ;
that he knew Wade before the 15th of November, and if he had
been the man, he must have known him.
A woman, named Hanson, proved that she saw the Reformers
after the Meeting was over, several of them bearing pike-staves
'like umbrellas; she also stated, that she saw is a publiz-hause a
pike-head, half a yard long, which a man carried in a I:ather
sheath; it was sharp on both sides like a razor; the screw was
four inches lang. •
The prosecutors now produced the placards which announced
the Meeting, and also the staff seized by Colonel Hargreaves.
Here the case for the prosecution closed.
Shortly after four o'clock, Mr. WILLIAMS rose and
addressed the Jury for the defendants, in an impres-
sive speech, which occupied upwards of two hours in
the delivery. The Learned Counsel observed, that
by the custom and laws of this realm, delivered to
u% by our ancestors, it was the undoubted. right and
privilege of Englishmen to assemble together for they
purpose of petitioning Parliament for a redress of
zrievauces. TO law had imposed•no limit in respect

• - ,
of numbers, and no assembly orthe people, however
assmerou, could be proncnnced illegal on that-ac-
count. The ostensible of jczt for which the .leetinn•
in question was convened ‘-as clearly a leg.: one ;
and if the Jury should be zowinced, from the evi..
,fence, that some individuals "night have come to
the Meeting secretly arm:,l. yet, unless that circuity-
kance could he brought 1.. ~e to knowledge of
the defendants, they cculd not b? airected by such a
circumstance. I: formed r:o part of tt:e original de-
sign of the persons who aisemhted on this occasion
that any part of them should come nrn,ed ; azd
therefore the isolated fact, that a number of perso::s
coming to tirc Meeting with ai ins, to be used, as apa
pared, solely for their own defence, could no. IC:7••
der the Meeting ilit)-al. Mr. Willianis dwelt with
great force on the circumstance, that not one of the
defendants had been brought into force with any cif
the persons who were armed, nor was there any evia
deuce to prove that any one of the derendAtts waS
acquainted with the circumstance of these bring any
arms whatever at the Meeting-. With respect to dad
charge of the conspiracy, the Learned Coun-el
served, there had not appeared a single iota of eviA
deuce to prove its existence. The prosecuto.s had
not•even shewn that any two of the detendants had
ever seen each other before the 15th of November,
when they met on the hustings. Great sues had
been laid On the fact, that some persons had gone to
the Meeting with arms: admitting that to be the
fact, he maintained that it v. as the undoubted right
of Englhhmen to carry arras in self-defence. It was
so laid down LY Mr...Lstice Blackstone (a passage
from whose Commentaries the • Learned ConnreL
read). it wai evident, from the whole conduct of
the persons so armed, that their only object was self!
defence, which was 'exemplified-by their fu: bear ante
when the staff was seized by Colonel Hargreaves.; and
also by the fact, that they only atter4red p: el;ara-
tion at those niuments when the alarm wa, given
that the soldiers were coming to attack . ; and
could it be wondered that these persons shopld have
prepared themselves with weapcns of self-defence, re-
collecting the transact'ons on the 16th of August,
and the:forcible dispersion of the Meeting on that
melancholy occasion--. 1 circumstance which • re-
sounded from one end of the kingdom to the other?
He animadverted streivly on the cruelty and injtts-
tic,- which the defendants I.ad sustained, on being
committed on a charge of Iligit,Treason, for which
the prosecutors, by their conduct, confessed there was
no foundation ; and concluded in a solemn appeal to
the Jury, in which he conjured them to lay aside all
feeling of prejn,lice imbibed against•the defendants,
and to be governed in their verdict solely by the evi-
dence.—The defendants were proceeding to call wit-
nesses, when -the JUDGE interposed, and the Coot.;
then adjourned.

Monday evening, at dusk, as Mr. Smeed, jun. of
Windmill-street, was driving home in a chaise, front_
Child's Hill, near Hampstead, accompanied by his
son, his horse was stopped by thtese iellows, two of
them ai med.with. bludgeons, and the other with a
pistol, who demanded money. They proceeded to
turn Mr. Smeed's pocket inside out, when people
were absolutely in sight, and they got from him c. 28.
and his watch. • They then drew the chaise into a
meadow, cut the harness, and made off in the direc-
tion of Wilstion. •
Yesterday morning; about ten o'clock, an auchi.'
cious villain entered the house of Mr. Dennison, No.
1, Denmark-court, and during Miss Benuison's teat-
porary absence in the kitchen, he contrived to pick:
the lock of the parlour-door, on which he tin ced "peas
a chest or drawers,' and packed' bp various articles;
lof property. On bis leaving the place, Miss Denni-
son heard footsteps, she instantly ran up stairs, and
saw a man of gentlemanly appearAr:e in the pas._
sage with a bundle unier his arm. Miss 'Jennison-
made an alarm, and the fellow ran for it, she pursued
him with a cry of " stop thief,'.' and at length the
miscreant dropped the bundle, and escaped.
On the evening of the lt.ith ult. a cow-house, at
the Knock Farm, near Portpata ick, containing sixteen
cows, belonging to Mr. PETER M‘Kintecu., was set.
on fire by some evil disposed persons, and all were de-•
stroyed, together with the premises.
Also at Ballantrne, i mill and kiln were burned to
the ground, and a quantity of grain lost. A few days•
prior, several Irish people•were at the mill, quarrel-'
ling about seeds, when they were turned away from'
the mill, and told they would get none ; they replied,
if so, they should-neither have mill nor kiln soon.
Sunday, about eleven o'clock, the south-east part-
of the College of Vicars, at Het eford, was discovered'
to be on fire; and, from various combustible mate-
rials found contiguous to the spot, there is every rea-,
son to suppose that it was the act of some incendiary.
Mackarel were on. Monday last brought, for the
first time this season, o Billingsgate-market, and
were sold by retail, by the fishmongers, at the prices
of Is. and I s. 6d. each.
Sunday se'nuight, there was a considerable fall of
now in Stirling, about three inches deep on an average.
A Correspondent of much experience in the growth
of potatoes, assures us that what is termed the curl
in that root, is chiefly, if not solely, occasioned by,
cutting the setts too thin, and not leaving a sufficient
body •to support vegetation, and not by exposing the
setts to the air, as is generally imagined. To remedy
this defect, he suggests that setts should beCut a full
inch square, and the knife should go to the centre of
the potatoe, otherwise vegetation ts injured, as the
veins of the eye of the potatoe go to its heart.

BIRTH.
In Montague-square, the Lady of J. le. G. Graham, Esq

N.Y. of a son.

MARAIEr.
At Anstruther, on the 27th ult. Mr. S. Williamson, Surgeon,
R.N. to Mrs. Nary nebb.

• DIED. •

At Chelte:hztra, on the :Id instant, after a lingering Waage
Major-Gene:al nniversally regretted by all who knew
him.
March 4, at Gibra:tor, Major Tyler, of the Royal Artillery.
Smithy. zt i.! ale 42d year of his age,
_Dr. Thomas
'Mown, l'rofessor of Moral Philosophy in the University of
t Citateaureux, in Frzr.ee, aged 75, the-father of General
lie:: d, 50 `Art Ii known for his talentr, his heroic devotion to
ape:col!, :Jr..: his Ile has left a 'widow with two chil-
dren and A considerable fortune.

11IGH-W A'rElt at LON DON BRIDGE TO—vIOR R ow.
Nl,rning 45 tr.intates after 7
terneatt - 5 —..... 6

LO ti" DON ; tea and plitilidkrd Try Licut. Rm, riskets-
/lace, Tcaepl•ast •