The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1848-07-26

royal visit was really in contemplation /; 1t would
indeed be difficult t. imagine such step, IN the
present state of the Irish capital and in the face
of the undisguised threats of insult towards the
! Queen by the party whose open sedtion has just
led to the arrest OF several Of It's leading members
THE cHARTIsT TRIALS AND CONVICTIONS.
On Saturday the Sth inst an Irish chartist named
Looney was tried at the Old Bailey for attending the
late illegal meetings The charge of creating riot
was withdrawn frome the prisoners indictment The
The Attorney General, Mr.. welsby, Mr. Bodkin,
and Mr. Clarke counsel for the prosecution The
prisoner was defended by Mr.. KeneaIy.
The Attorney General in opening the case, said that
this case was very short and conclusive. The case
would be proved by single witness and he need not
do more than read the delivered by the prisoner
"a speech he must characterize most dangerous
one. There was come slight degree Of difference in
this as compared with those that had already
been under considerations for in those the speeches
Ossn a large % whilst
the bar was delivered to meeting of some three hun
dred persons in the Chartsthal in the Backfriars,
road In addition to the charge of sedtion. the pri
soner was charged with attending an unlawful meet
ing, and with taking part In riot but with regard
the latter charge the jury would not have to enquire
into it, The Attorney General then to read
transcript of government short hand writer's
Of the prisoners speech the substance of which
follows
lie said he attended the meeting to assist in the for
nation of a club. He avowed himself dreadful oppo-
nent specifically of Lord John Russell. He advised
the audience to possess themselves of arms, as they
had right to do sothey had right repel the mid
u
arms to oppose the myrmidons Of base government.
A time was coming when men would have to act as
men he sara that Jonn Mitchell, man who for four
teen weeks had written and propounded the most
beautiful doctrines, and who had done his duty as
much as Robert Emmett had done his in his day had
been removed from amongst them He avowed himself
a republican in heart and soul, and advised all who
could to get Pixies, he said, could DO had for
eghteen pence apiece, and pistols cheap. The
House of Lords was rendezvous for pckpookets and
good would be done until the land was wrested from
tbs robbers who held it, To the Irishmen present. he
nv aft IA har uaa crp;p rtp0n
from the surface of Irish SOIL would never leave the
land until every man had enough. English and Irish
UNDECIDED they would take it, and if the myrmidons of
the English should attempt to hew down their Irish
ably heavens0 said he, we win be there to assist
them He then moved resolution, which was Sc
conded by person named Rooney, and which was to
this effect that, God made man, and as man made
arms it is the undeubted right of every mau to pos
them, and to knew the of Thorn; and, as the
that none but the knows anything Of he adj
vised every man to obtain them.
Evidence being called to prove the delivery Of the
spe CHI:
Mr.. KENEALY then addressed the jury on behalf of
the prisoner. He certainly felt considerable embar
basement In conducting this Defence because he could
have hoped that member Of the profession, with
standing than himself had been selected to conduct
ceived friendly intimation from member of the bar
that he was to be watched in his conduct of this
fence and all that he said the subject of repeal
to be strictly noted down to be used against him
The ATTORNEY GANERAL-How dare you say, sir,
anything of the kind! How dare you make any such
assertion! Some friend Of your own may have made
such observation but would not condesccnd to do
50. ! say, how dare you sir, make such obssrva-
Mr. KENEALY appealed to the bench, whether the At
torney General was to be allowed to use such language
Chief Justice WILDE said that he had mentioned
something that had been whispered to him by private
fre nd and If it were untrue he must expect to have
it repudiated 1t was charge against the Attorney
General
Mr. KrsEALY then proceeded with his address His
r1ort ho Irsch and aof
who considered that the repeal Of the legislative union
between his country and England would be most be-
nefcia to both England and Ireland. He had been
placed by her Msjestys Attorney General before the
jury to answer charge Of sedition, of attending
unlawful meeting, and Of riot The ttorney;generai
Why he would ask had 1t ever been brought forward?
He was but young lawyer; yet ever since he had
made law his study he had applied himself the
sttutional law Of this country; and although he
not to be supposed to understand constitutional law
as clearly as Attorney General or an Attorney
Generals colleague, he thought he knew what the
constitutional law well, and he had no hesitation
in asserting that the law as it had boon laid down in
these trials by the law officers of the not the
constitutional law of this country 1t was contended
that the people had right to resist That doctrine
he denied He never could subscribe to any such doc
trne. The revolution of 1858 not the less gori
because it effected by force He did not deny
ton but he believed that he did from pure and pa
triotic motives and, If they believed that-however
preston it was their duty to acquit him He cons-
dered it absurd to raise an cutlery against such doc
trines when they remembered that scarcely any great
national cause had ever been gained without force,
that great foundation Of liberties, Magma Charta
itself having been gained at the point of the sword
Similar opinions had been held by numbers Of ceebra-
ted men, although they had not expressed them with
the same force and the prisoner Among
the Statesmen of modern times who had on ny oc-
casons expressed similar principles he alluded part
cuarly to the Earl of Chatham; and among philoso-
piers, to Hume, Locke, and Paley. As an instance
Of the necessity for resistance to unconstitutional
measures he pointed out the injury which had been
done to this country BY those proceedings the
to this country the loss of the American coonies,,
which Lord Chatham had described the brightest
jewel in the English crown" If those proceedings
had been prevented by proper resistance the part
of the English people. those colon es would still be
tanned and this country would be in far more high
and independent condition than at present The
most despotc minister Of George tho Third attempted
to put down this right and it was only in the free
ercse of this right that the prisoner had There
always alarmsts who exaggerated the danger of
such meetings as had recently taken place. Directly
the meeting advertised leading newspaper raised
the panic. by advising trades people to shut up
their shops and what perhaps would otherwise have
been peaceful and unimportant meeting was raised
into dangerous proceeding by the presence of
the horse police; and then to increase the public ap
most miserable spirit of I" funkeyisn-it was an ex-
pressive word and very properly applied-had sworn
themselves In as special constables He quoted
opinion laid down by Sir Thomas wilde at the state
trials in 1874 when that learned gentleman said that
meeting to be illegal must not be merely large meet
ing but must be of such character excite alarm
in reasonable minds yet the Attorney General de
MED the law to be Now he thought he had clearly
established the right of resistance to tyranny and Of
public meeting and he asked had those rights been
taken away The privilege of public meeting, of
course, meant the privilege Of speech and If 1t
attempted to deprive them Of that liberty Of speech,
then the attempt amounted to act Of tyranny
and whether 1t right not to resist it, be-
came delicate question. But 1t forced
upon them by recent events. Louis Philippe de-
stroycd liberty Of meeting, liberty of speech, and
liberty Of the press, and made trial by jury it
is now in Ireland in the words of a great man, "a
deluson, mockery and snare;" and, he asked where
was the man who had taken Those unconstitu-
tiopal measures! The liberty of the press
ssisbe because too powerful to be successfully
grappled with. But 1t not the with speaking
for an individual might be taken away, and his in
iuence ceased. He therefore urged them to be very
jealous and watchful Of every encroachment which
tended to diminish the rights of che subject After
citing various authorities for the the prisoner
had TAKEN and aluding to the present condition Of
Ireland, as showing the result Of unconstitutional