The Statesman.
London, England, 1818-03-07 00:00:00

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Mims sinvitai MILD OX "114111 r Iit644.IITLL,
BIRMINGIhAIe,.THUnIiDitir, Fee. 26. •
•
NOtwithetending toil vOry iNilettleets etude of the
weather, en isenteesi number of people assembled' or
thle occasion; they may it twit bd volailted at best
toren toe sad twehe • ihrielitid. • A. eery consider:
able neesber of the • most respectable Ind well.k.
• formed Gintlentei of the Wire end neighboarhood
attended; and seemed most heartily to tippet:we of the
reMeedines of the Meeting. We sederstind that
the Police behaved with the greatest propriety: 06
its being !etiolated to the Chief Constable, that mai
person! had en intention of endeavouring to create if
riot, in order to pat a stop to the proceedingi, Mr.
Payne decliMd that if any person behaved himself
Improperly, Ito would take ore drat be was imme-
diately taken into custody. An attempt, however,
was made to•slisterb the harmony of the Meeting by
the enemies of Reform, by sending a parcel of vaga-
bond mountebanks, to drown the voice of the speaker
by the noise of a.drum and other instruments.
A short time after the Chairmen• had opened the
besinets of the day, these worthy advocates of the
Ministry mode their appearance, with dream beating,
fools grinning, enramosch dancing; bet scarce a
• Meals voice of the immense multitude appliedhig.--
.Tbe poor enterable dopes now found their error ;
OW people began to salute them la a way not at ell
Of nimble to them—fir Mr. Merryman fell from his
'Muse, the. &me. iftds demolished, the scarantouch
liiirittedriten away, and all the fermi.
noble array 6f ifilant and iatelligerice, which a few
minutes beforekoked so terrible and appalling, and
which were to have pet the poor Reformers to flight,
vanished " like the baseless fabric of a vision, and
kft not a wreck behind." Thu, this stepid attempt
to pot a stop to the proceedings of the day, was ter-.
'Mooted' in a few minutes, and the business went on
without any further interruption. •
The Magistrates and Police seem at last to be
aware of she true characters of Reformers, for they did
sot on this occasion confound them with rioters and
disturbers of the peace, therefore it was not thought
necessary to swear in special constables; nor were
the people insulted by the military being ordered to
hold themselves in readiness.
The business of the day commenced by Mr. Mooax
calling Mr. &moron to the Chair, who read the Re.
quiiitinn, and addressed the Meeting ss follows:
* 46 GetttLexim," said Mi. Edmonds, " you are
tabled together to express your abhorrence• of the
frequent suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, and
'if you Witt pay attention to me fora few minutes, I
will tell you why yoti ought to express your abhor.
settee at it. We have ever been taught to venerate the
Constitution. Now what iiaConstitutien? A Condit°.
tion'is a digest of 'solidest principles, emanating from
the People; it is a rule of conduct for the Governors,
not the governed : it mast; from its very nature, be
is every respect subject to the great mass of the
People: it emanated from the People, is always de.
pendant upon the People, and therefore is inferior to
the People. A Constitution that is not of this na-
ture, is a violation of the rights of man ; and as the
rights of man are antecedent and superior to all au.
Nullity, a violation of the rights of man is a des-
potism. A Constitution stands in the same relation
te the People, as a Committee does to the power
that appointed it. If a Government is appointed by
the People, and entirely dependant upon the People,
vs !tether it 'be Monarchical, Aristocratical, or De.
moctatical, it is last and perfectly constitotiorsal ;
but if it be not appointed by the .People, and edits
contrary to their desires, it is neither more-nor less
than a despotism.
" Rut what," said Mr. PAmonds, 44 is the reason
that Ministers give for sospersdkitthe Ifibeal Corpus
Act, for this violation of the Constitution, for this
mill greater outrage oft the righti of man? Why,
they say that trains of treason were laid from one
end of the island to the other, and that they only
wanted the match of some kcal insurrection to pro.
dice an explosiort, and to involve the country in
anarchy and bloodshed. If this were true, why did
they send that Devil Oliver ahread
.into the country,
like Satan seeking whom be might devour I
It was slot true, and they knew it, and therefore
they sent oat their emissaries to creattr•treeson.—
Have Ministers then •slees ed such an abhorrence of
treason ? Countrymen (slid Mr. E), Oliver came
to Rioningliani, but thank GO be was unsuccessful ;
be 'found no coadjutors here in the police; he did
vat find a Nadin of Manchester, in the prrsots of
Mr. Payne. At Derby he. uas unfortunately more
successful ; there, indeed, his footsteps were marked
with she drippings of human gore ! ! There, indeed,
a bloody dish was served up to the epicures of des.
pods*, in the mingled bodies of Brandreth, Turner,
end Ltidiam. (LOrsderies of ihwite, shame, horrible,.
4c.) I saw Mr. Payne (said Mr. E.), this morning,
be-6'5400d me that he had been repeatedly told, that
there ties something treasonable going on in 13ir-
tainelkamt bet he had alwpys denied it; he had fre,
yeenctly: plotted his word in the contrary: Thatl ,
have ers doubt, that Mr. Payne was the cause whri
many of us were not like the two Gentlemen near me, •
(Messrs. Johnston sod, Bagoley,) clothed in chains
soul immured in dungeons. Is not such a man de-
serving of your thanks ? (said Mr. E.)—(Loud cries
of he is, he is! and great applause.)--Why then, if
Ministers were thus assured there was no treason in
Ilirminghsin, did they •lay those reports before the
two houses, in which Birmingham was so faliel* ac-
cused ? Why, but that they Might aulpee d the Con-
stitution ? And why suspend the Constitution, but
shit they might persecute, and if pessibfe destroy the:
Reformers. It was Reform, and notsireistin, they
omitted to prevent." '•
[Abe* this tease the speaker *Os ;alarm
the approach of the amentebenks. Mr. Edmond'
assured the people, that be hid bad positive evidence
of these men being tilted 4i &twit the Meeting, that
be had comalunicated this to the proper iuthorit(ss,
and they 64 first. hilt word that officers should he in
wailing at Mi. Chaim's, and that lie might -send'
for them at aittithiee he *Ott netesisry. • Persons
• • • 1 •
11 eta %, sawed. y kat. , hint ire :ihe oliiters t
old
ssi ere, the niseolobisela thought proper .to deestitp.
Mil; OS& 1' hag aka ittitiliiite AIWA, Mr. Bd-
. •
L 44,
RI Mica irtieiher mien thet Isid-beeeittilty Of sbeh
(4 a.es as b bed woe& she Mitt is eritt)t'ofi de.

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