The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1844-06-04 00:00:00

THE SENTENCES.

The Attorney-General soon after rose, and moved that
the traversers ( with the exception of the Rev. Mr. Tierney)
be called to appear at the bar and receive the judgment of
the court. _

After an interval of a few minutes, the traversers, who
had previously retired to their chamber adjoining the
court, were sent for, and their re-appearance elicited the
greetings of their effervescent friends in various parts of
the building.
Mr. O'Connell and his son took their seats at the
Queen's counsels' table. The other traversers occupied
a box immediately behind.
Mr. Bourne (the clerk of the crown) having formally
called them by name, and they having respectively an-
swered,
Mr. Justice Burton proceeded to pass sentence amidst
the most profound silence. The learned judge spoke in
the most solemn and emphatic manner, but was scarcely
audible. His Lordship after noticing the crimes of which
the traversers had been found guilty, alluded to the dis-
tinction in their cases, and said that one of them stood in
a peculiar position. [The learned judge was here inter-
rupted for a few minutes by the sensation produced by his
last observation, and the simultaneous rush of as many as
could move towards the bench in order to catch every
syllable that might fall from the Court relative to Mr.
O'Connell.] With respect to him (resumed his lordship)
he must consider that he stands in a very peculiar condi-
tion indeed, with regard to the commission of the offence
of which he, and the other traversers at the bar, had been
convicted. They had concurred, unquestionably, with
him in the course which he thought proper to pursue,
but they had, as the Court believed, concurred with him
in consideration of the high estimation in which they held
his superior talents and judgment, and he, moreover, had
accepted, acknowledged, and taken upon himself the
avowed condition of being their leader ; and therefore his
case differed from that of the other traversers. [Every
allusion to Mr. O'Connell being the signal for renewed
excitement, this observation, of course, produced its effect.]
The learned judge proceeded to observe that these con-
siderations lessened what might be looked upon as the
great guilt of their conduct, when it was considered how
far they might have been drawn into the commission of it
by the estimation in which they had held his judgment.
[Mr. John O'Connell here interrupted the court, ap-
parently under the influence of considerable excitement,
and made some observation, the only audible part of
which was, " Pardon me, my lord." His father, who
continued to sit beside him, interposed and compelled him
to preserve silence.]
Mr. Justice Burton hesitated for a little, in order to as-
certain what the substance of the observation was which
was addressed to him, but finding tfiat Mr. John O'Con-
nell had resumed his seat, the learned judge observed that
there was another gentleman before the court—he meant
the son of the principal traverser—himself a man of ac-
knowledged talent, legal attainments, high in estimation,
with whom he (Mr. Justice Burton) had the honour of
being personally acquainted, and of whose general con-
duct he had a high opinion. In his case, also, the prin-
cipal traverser would see circumstances strongly in his
favor from the near relationship in which he stood to him.
His Lordship then alluded to the monster meetings, and
said, that though the principal might no doubt intend to
carry his object without any infraction of the public peace,
yet that the gathering of them was a high and dangerous
misdemeanour—dangerous to such an extent as nearly to
have produced civil war. [Sensation.] After a few fur-
ther remarks on this subject the learned judge said, "
crime had been committed which called for exemplary
punishment—punishment likely to prevent the same per-
sons from committing the same offence again, and to deter
others actuated by the same feelings from the perpetra-
tion of similar acts. For himself, and he might, he
thought, add all the court, he was sure that his own and
their minds had been brought into exactly the proper
state to consider the case. They were bound to award
punishment of an exemplary kind, but at the same time
were determined not to suffer any opinion of their own as
to the offence to guide them, but to strictly examine and
conclude upon the character of the offence. With these
remarks, he said it then only remained for the court to
pass sentence. [Here the learned judge
appeared much
affected, and after a brief pause proceeded.] The court
are :14* opinion that Mr. O'Connell must be sentenced to
be imprisoned for the space of 12 calendar months, that
he must be fined in the sum of £2,000, (sensation,) and
that he must enter into security for his good behaviour for
seven years, in the sum of £5,000, and in two sureties for
£2,500 each. With respect to the sentence on the re-
mainder of the traversers, the court should award the same
amount of punishment to each ; namely, that each he ini-
kult4aned fur nine calendar months ; and that each of them