Old Bailey New Court, Wed...
The Times, 1824-06-10T00:00:00

The trials of theqe lersons were this day continued. Michael John O'Connor, and Richard HasseaU were indicted for having published a profane and blasphemous libel against reli- gion and the Holy ScriptuTes, contained in Painc's Ageof Meason. MIr. FaEitCs, the counsel for the prisoner O'Connor, after the .ury had been sworn, objected that some of them had been on the 3ury who tried the prisoners found guilty on the preceding day. After sonme discussion, the counsel for theprosecution waved the right of refusing the challenge, which not having been made as the jury came to be sworn, was now in strictness too late, and a fresh jury was sworn. Dlr. BERNARD having opened the pleadings, Mr. BOLLAND, for the prosecution, stated the case to the jury, which was similar to thosc mentioned in our report of yesterday. Richard Lidbetter was called2 who proved that on the day laid in the indictment, he went to Carhle's shop, and having houghtanum- her of 7'h-e Icpubolicais, he asked for The Age of Reasom The prisoner Hassell then said he had only comen in to keep the shop for a short time, all th-ise persons who had before been in it hayinig been taken up; that he could not sell him the book he asked for then, but that if the witness would come in about an hour, a man would be there who would sell any thing. The witness went away, and returned in an hour when he saw the prisoner O'Con- nor standing near Hasseil, and behind the counter. Upon The witness asking for the Age of Reason, I{assell fetched him twvo copies, one bound, and the other unbound. of wbhicl witness selected the unbound copy, and paiti 4., the price of it, to O'Connor. The witness then asked for Palmner's Prin- ciples ofNabtire, of which Hassell said he had not a copy; but O'Connor said they had one, and wvould sell it to him. [O'(Connor was sepalrately indicted for having sold the latter book, arid had pleaded " guilty" to that charge.] The passages charged as libellous were then read from the book, and compared with the counts of the indictment, and the case for the prosecunion closed. Mfr. FREaCti addressed tho Jury on behalf of the prisoner O'Connor. He remarked upon the evidence, which he contended did not atfcct hi* client, whose presence in Carlile's shop was purely ac. cidenta1, and whose participation in the offence with which he was charged was without anv evil intention. He then repeated the argu- ments which lie urged in his speech for Jeffereys, who was tried on the day before, the tenour. of which was, that while Unitarianismn went unpunished, blanphemy, like thlat conta ipd in the book for publishing which the prisoners were indicted, dght not to be the sabjectof prosecution. He concludedbvexhortinghe jury not to suffer themselves to become, by their verdict, the instrumen of a persecu- tion which had in no instance prevented persons from exercising that freedom of opinion which was their birthright, but had always been most hostile to the interests of true religion. The prisoner Hassell then proceeded with his defence, which was amere eclhoof thecontentsofthe Age of Reason, Hevindicatedthie purity of his intentions, profcssed himself to have no faith in any of the known systems of religion, all of which he believed were equally fabulous and vain, and took no smiall credit to hiniself for having put the book he was now indicted for having published, into the hands of many persons of aU ages and of both sexes. He *ead several very long extracts from that book for the purpose. as he said, of showing the jury what was the real meaning of the passages laid in the in- dictment. The RECORDER said, that as the prisoner was without counrel, he could not help suggesting to him that he was not doing himself any good by the course he was pursuing. The prisoner continued to read for some time longer, ending his defence (the effcct of which was considerably enhanced by his broad Glocestershire dialect) by an appeal to the jury, whose verdict of " not guilty" he contidentlv anticipated. A witness was called to ('Connor's character, and AMr. Wontner, the keeper of Newgate, spoke to the fact of his having attended divine service while in prison. Bishop, the turnkey, also said his behaviour had been decorous. The RECoRDES-thell sammed up. Some of the jury having expressed a doubt wbether both the priloners were acquainted with the contents of the hooks they had sold, the Recorder said the lav held them to be so acquainted, and responsible for their own acts. The jury then retired, and were absent abotit a quarter of an hour, when thiey found Hassellgailty,'snd O'Connor not -taidty. The RECORDEnt sentenced Hassell to two years imprisonment, and to enter into his own recognizance in 1001., to be of goo: beha- viour during his life. The prisoner heard his sentence with great composure and said, " I have fortitude enough to bear such a triaL" The triaM of the other urisoners was postponed until to.morrow, in consequence of their objections to the jury, which, although they might have been ovcrruled, the coinsel for the prosecution acqni- esced in. The followilg prisoners this day received sentence of death AIr. y Wvatson, J. Reading, Robert hebber, John Blorris, James Thomas, and Wlfilliam Reynolds, for stealing in a dwelling.house;* R,ichard Hlart, J. Williams, Thomaa Davis, Joln Thomson, John Johnson, and Donald 31 'Crov, for burglary; T. J. Bovce. for cut- ting and maiming; Richard Cornwall and Ann Gates, for highway robbery; William Urhallcy, for secretintg a letter containing 51. ; Thomas King, for horsc-stealing; John Colclough, for personating a pensioner to obtain prize-money; and J. CLarke, for abetting Col- dough. Mar7 Watson and Ann Gates pleaded (we believe) pregnancy in stay of execution. Four prisoners were sentenced to transportation for life, and 46 for seven years; thrce to whipping; two to whipping and imprison-, n.ent and 78 to vat ious teTms of imprisonment and hard labour, and minor puniashments. I OLD BAILEY NE Ir COURT, IVEDvEsDAY, JUvE 9. CAItItLE'S SHOPNIE-(.