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The Bristolian

20/10/1830

Printer / Publisher: James Ackland 
Volume Number: IV    Issue Number: IV
No Pages: 4
 
 
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The Bristolian

Date of Article: 20/10/1830
Printer / Publisher: James Ackland 
Address: Bristolian Office, Bristolian Court, Bridewell Lane
Volume Number: IV    Issue Number: IV
No Pages: 4
Sourced from Dealer? No
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THIS BRXSTOLIAZT MEMOIRS; and CORRESPONDENCE of JAMES ACLAND+ Proprietor and Editor— mitten by Uimalf.. " I LIKE HONESTY IN ALL PLACES."— Judge BavUv. Printed and Published by JAMES ACLA- ND ( Sotu PROPRIKTOR AND EDITOKJ at the ERISTOMAN OFFICK, ; iristo! ian Court, BridcweU LAUS. VOL. IV— No. IV. WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1830. [ PRICE I shall hate the honor,, in a few days, of originating a BRISTOL POLITICAL UNION, on the model of that of BIRMINGHAM, and r hereby cordially invite all HONEST REFORMERS who desire to co- operate with me to such end, t « forward me their names immediately. The object of the Political Unions now in course of formation throughout the Country, is, the Reform of all abuses in Church and State— the consequent amelioration of the People, and restoration of the British Constitution to its • riginal purity, JAMES ACLAND. TO THE INHABITANTS OF ST. MARY REDCLIFF. Fellow Parishioners, You may add to the names of the Select Vestrymen given by me in my former letter, the subjoined:— Mr. T. Stiff, Starch Maker, Redcliff- Street, — W. Cook, Cooper, ditto 1 have alio to beg your correction of the following errors in my former list; 1 Instead of Henry Fothergill, the Brazier, i' should have been John FothergiH, the Iron Factor, of Temple S reet.— 2. The Christian name of Mr. Wyld should have been George.— ;$. It is Mr. Richard Pool King, of Redcliff- Parade. The illegal rate attempttd to be imposed on us, - Ho signed by tbe following gentlemen ; Mr. J. Acraman, — H. Attwood, — J. Steel, — S. R. Wilmott, — T. Stiff, Mr. J. FothergiH, — G. Wyld, — T. Lucas, — W. Powell, — J. B. Colthurst, The Select Vestry consists, as I understand, of twenty persons, and it seem! there are but ten names attached to this obnoxious attempt to tax the Parish without the consent of the Parishi- oners. Among these ten names, I observe those of the Churchwardens, Messrs. Powell and Colthurst. Now I have the authority ( f the Alderman of the Ward ( Mr. Fripp) for stating that the Churchwardens are not members ot the Select Vestry until they are out of office- And thus it will be seen that the rate has not received the sanction of a majority of the Select Vestry ! Still, however, they were doubtless a ma- jority of those present— but what then ? The Rate was illegal— and if Mr. W. L. Clark, the Vestry Clerk of St. Mary Redcliff, does not know this, I beg leare to refer him to Mr. Lionel B'srg, the Vestry Clerk of AM Saints- who will inform him, that " tie Churct Rates are nut legal unless made by the Parishi- oners at a General Meeting convenedIf Mr. Bigg does not unsay to- day what he said yos- teiday— aye! said and swore tot— such wilt- be his consistent and correct reply. Let tfeie suffice on the subject tor the present. Meanwhile, I beg to direct your attentiow to the following Extract from the Evidence given by the Alderman of the Ward, ( Mr. Fripp ) before the Committee of the House- of Commons, on Select Vestries, on the 11th of March last. Read it attentively— and of course, with due deference— for the worthy Alderman was on his oath ! !! " You are a resident of the City of Bristol?— I am-; 1 reside within two miles of the City. And an Alderman of the City?— I am. Have you paid any attention to the parochial management of the affairs of the City of Bristol » — I have ; I preside over one of the wards. Which ward ?— St. Mary Redcliff. Are you aware, whether or not the vestry bave very considerable influence in the parish, owing to their having the management of the charitable fund ® ?— They have influence. Considerable, is it not?— Yes, they have considera- ble sums to give away to the poor; as alderman of the ward, I have considerable property to give away, which is in my exclusive gift. In the distribution of these funds, are yon aware oS any particular line that is followed by the vestry, or is the distribution what you would consider as altogether V mm S4 THE BIUSTOLIAN suite impartialf— I believe they are so; I took some pains to investigate tbat, because i had heard that they were not JIB partial; I gave myself some pains t# - inquire, and I had reason to find that the information I received » as invariably false; T believe they are very impartial; they give themselves a great deal of pains to find out deserving objects, without reference to any party 5 tbat is my opinion. Are you aware that, generally speaking, the vestries * » B the city of Bristol are formed out of geutlemeu of • particular political bias and feeling t— That has not been so much the case within the last 20 years, as formerly. Bristol has gone westward into the adjoin- ing parish of Clifton. The old inhabitants who used to fill the office of churchwardens, have retired ; tlie • vestries are now formed of a different class of persons, rather below them ; of respectable tradesmen. Is it not the case,' that, generally speaking, for ex- ample your own vestry, is formed out of individuals of a particular political leaning ?— It is the case cer- tainly ; it is more mixed than it was ; the waru ovei which I preside was what is ealled a blue vestrv, a high church party J the vestry used to contain a grea' majority of persons of that description. Did you ever happen to hear that the^ vestTy iu vour - own parish have been in the habit of keeping a sort « f record of the manner in which the freemeu vote for t^ ier- clecOvm ut — - A" I not » \ varc of that fact. Rid you ever hear it rumoured, that in the distrilu- ilOO of the charities, such freemen who voted in a particular way for members of Parliament, were re- lieved in preference toothers?— I did hear it on one occasion ; I investigated it; I charged a person with '' it; he proved to my satisfaction that such was not • She ease. - Did you ever hear that the vote given was registered ' tspottlhe back of the copy of his freedom, in blue jnk* « — No; and I should have detected that, because, as to certain amounts I have to distribute at Cliristmas they must produce the copy of their freedom, as the Wioney is left to freemen, or freemen's wivesor daugh- ters $ 1 shaulJ have detected that, having been a warden, and the vestry the other, After the wardens are out of office, then they become vestrymen " Surely the worthy Aldermmi must lmv » been ntm compos, or worse, to have so grossly com. milted himselt. It wauld pozsle bin; to preaut< the freedom of any elector who polled f > r Davis which has not a blue ink mtttk at the back. How will he get over such fact, and how can he reconcile such fact with his sworn testimony?! Why the mark is made, I leave the blue par: y ! to explain— but if they refuse me " tbat plana- j lion, I shall naturally conclude that it is not done for impartial purposes. Rl". Fripp's credulity carries him beyond all bounds.. for he has ventured to tell the Mouse of Commons— and on bis oath— 1. That the paro- chial management cf theCity of Bristol generally speaking, gives satisfaction.— 2. Thai there is a sufficient control over the accounts and expendi- ture; and : u. That the distribution of the charitable funds is quite impartial. On these three glaring mis- statements I bdg to join issue with this worshipful gentleman, and if he were any thing less di 0111 fled than a Biistol Alderman, * I should have no hesitation in declaring them to be falsehoods. JAMES ACL AND. MEM.— I deem it prudent to allow the affairs of St. James's to stand over for a few days. T he advantage of the delay will be seen here„ fer. Mr. BRIGSTOCKE. MEM —" A Medical Student of the Old School" has written me a long epistle in defence of this gentleman which, for the present, I abstain from publishing ; first because it will do Mr. It. more harm than good, and secondly, because accompanied with a threat that >/ 1 do net give it insertion, a letter will appear in Saturday's magistrate for 11 or 12 years ; I never saw a name of Mirror ngaiml me. , fear , w oppouent „ , J00d cttuse. % freemen in 1 i le ink. j casej p/ ead aver HJeless body of a drugged Ceiiwally speaking joes the paiochial management ( nfan, t and ,.„ prolecUon of the lives of others from * r the city Of Bristol, give satisfaction Ml does. jmedical carelessness and chemical ignorance. You think there is a sufficient control over the aeeoxtats and expenditure?— I think so; f have had to do wki » other wards and parishes, in consequence MEM.— I heartily congratulate Mr. Lawson or illness and death of other aldermen, and I never 0n his acquittal yesterday, and so I am sure. J. A. Sae& pi feiii one complaint in my life of the accounts, • stsd there tha party was satisfied on my recommending must those who, on strong grounds, instituted, < & V vestvy « , produce their accounts. and ver? Pr° Petly 50• , his prosecution. The Your vestries are SelHlected ?- Yes-, the minister case> when il went to thc JuT w* s one of in « w » it cases ths minister nominates wee great doubt, and the assumption of Mr. L.' t innocence, ( independently of the very high character he teeeived oa » 11 hands.) but » n act as well of humanity as well as of justice. 1 heartil\ hope the cowardly assassin will yet be detected, and meet the condign punish- ment he so richly neserves, J, A. To ths EDITOR or THE BRISTOL! AN! Stilmdutit Oct. 16'*, 1830. Sir, Myself and Benjamin fkrratt, sn apprentice to Joseph Cur. in, Nurseryman, Clifton, were called into ihe Seed Shoo, and the door locked directly.; we were then unjustly accused by Mr. Ctirtin of stealing 3 . Gil. from the till ol the said Shop, and searched at his request, by Thomas Mjets, a Constable of Clifton, without, warrant or licence from a Magistrate, but no money found upon us. There are seven men and a boy who had access to the Shop, equally with ourselves, and enly three were seaiched— namely, ourselves and the boy. As we are perfectly innocent of the charge, we consider ourselves injured, and desiie your opinion on the subject. WILLIAM BAGNELL, BENJAMIN BARRATT. P. S. We were detained in the Shop above an hour. MOM.— The conduct of Mr. Curtin ( according to this statement) was clearly illegal, as also was that Cf Myers, anil Ujere can be little question that the parties have a remedy, by action, for false'imprisionment. Why were not ihg other persons who were employed also searched ' J. A. To THE EDITOR OF THE BRISTOLIAN. SIR I do not know what pleasure you can have in the perpetual promulgation of gross and infamous lies; but falsehood certainly seems to be the only element in which you delight. I was informed last night, after leaving Court, that you had charged Mr. Mills with great inhumanity. & c. with refer- ence. to the case of the Irishwoman who lost her child, and wilh having refused lo notice the circumstance, except as paid for as an Advertisement. The fact is utterly false, as you might have known, if you had looked at our Paper ( published three days before your charge) It is with extreme reluctance [ notice any thing in your pages, but as my Father was out of town at the time, and £ was the person to whom the application was made, I am induced, though greatly against my inclination, to notice this one of the many lies which abound in the Bristolian, inasmuch as it personally concerns myself. 1 am, Sir, your's, & c. THOMAS MILLS. THE BRISTOL! AN 15 P. S. I trust, should you choose to notice j stance, in connection « ith his delay, suspicious, bail at my suit at the pr< sent moment. Mr. th s latter, you will inset t the whole of is, ^ nd n otdisgraco me by noticing me simply as a Correspondent of your's. MKM.— Mr. Milts charges me wfth publishing that which is not tact; I have only 10 state that I received jay information from the mother of the child. 1 f she mis- iof rmet » me, { shall have Jo regret that \ » as the cause of its publication. At the time, however' I could u > t have sufficient reason for suspecting my informant ( o state an untruth of an individual who had manifested a kiod feeling towards her. The you > g geimema » ' s delicacy cf expression qui overwhelms me. " A. To THE EDI C() R OF THE . B R. I STOLl A N Sir, Messrs. Bartlett & Williams have, in their correspondence, invariably omitted to refer to my s'. aemenl of having been maliciously arresteil by them— fust at Portsmouth, and afterward, in Bristol. Why do they not account for the manner of my liberation ? Because they well know that the tru h would condemn them in the estimation of all honest men, and of all Mer- chants of any pretension to commercial character. Either 1 am, or 1 am nut, indebted to them. Now, they have caused me to bt aires'. ed twice since my connection with them ceased. I am now at large. Yet I have never given bail— nor taken the benefit of any Insolvent Act— nor resorted to any legal measure for regaining rin liberty, except calling upon you, through the Tolzey Court of this City, to shew cause for m> detention— which you vainly aitempsed to do— and in consequence of which failure on your part, 1 was told by the worthy Governor of our Goal, that I might leave his Castle when I pleased- Pray, let me ask, if- this is not presumptive evidence that my arrest was illegal— and that you have no j ust claim upon me ? Let us now see a little into the Portsmouth affair. It was there I left the employ of Messrs. B. & W. in July last— or rather was turne 1 adrift by Mr. Bartlett. I made my demami against him in the regular way, and he amused me by talking, and only talking, of settling llit accounts by arbitration. Meanwhile he got the iihip ready for sea, when, thinking that circum- l caused htm to be ariesttd— whereupon he in- duced Mr. I lea'her, by lodging the ship's papers in his hands, to bail him. An arbitration was n > vv seriously entertained. Mr. Bartlett named Caj » * f Jarman, and I named Capt. Massey, both <>' them being ship- owners, and they appointed Mr, Headier the referee. A day was appointed for the first meeting vhich 1 - attended— an\ i where I was sur| rised to find a sheriff ' s < ffi w as the. snb- titutf. of Mr. Harden. Th is honorab to you*, 4f you can eenceivc it so, was my St- arrest. Being in a strange place, bail was ou of the question, and I was under ihe • necessity of going to Prison, where I remained nine da> s — when Mr. B.' s attorney offered me, through ihe medium of my a torney, <£ 5 out of his own packet, if I would go out. 1 persisted, however in refusing my liberty on any other terms, than Mr. Bariletl's singing an arbilraiion bond for lh' account to be settled in three days. He con seated to such terms— the bond was signed, an< i was turned out of Goal. This bond ( with al oilier necessary papers and- documents to provi my case) is now in the hands of Mr. C. li Walker, my Solicitor. Of course i no soonei regained my liberty than I looked for the settle nrent of ihe affair by arbitration, bui the execu tion of the bond having liberated Mr. Birtlett'f bail, he immediately possessed himself of th hip's papers, sent the vessel to sea, and lefi Por. smouih himself for Bristol. To this City I followed him, and immediately applied I Messrs. B. & W. for the fulfilment of the con ditions of the bond, under the . penalty of £ 100 which it recognised. On the very day of tliis application, they arrested me the second time !!! On each occasion the vvril was for <£ 30.— ye now a claim is advanced by these gentlemen in your Bristolian, of upwards of ,£ 100. If I am indeed their debtor, why am I at large— without bail— and after a two- fold arrest ? Let them mswer this question. And let any plain un biassed man look to the above facts, and say il Messrs. Barllett & Williams can make out even the appearance of an honest case, without falsi- fying this simple statement. It is of no avail for them to mistifv the business. They are out on Prller is one i f their bail. Is not their demand then, against me, a piece of unequalled audacity ? ROBERT ANDERSON. MEM,— It man possiby appear to some of my eaders, thai 1 devote mure space to this cor- respondence than I ought ; be it remembered, however, thai in a i ommirciat Town and Sea- port, it must ever be considered an object oj the highest importance to pnrent or counteract mercantile oppression. The hard- working Sailor knows but ittle of the jawing- tack, and it were a pity he - hoa/ d'be taken aback by the. land sharks. It » s his feeling which has inducts me to sacrifice an unusual proportion of my columns for some few umbers, to the complaint of Anderson, and, in justice to the dtftnee, also of Messrs. Bartlett and Williams, whose next communication should close the statements of fact on the case submitted to Public opinion, J. A. LO THE EDITOR OF THE BRISTOLIAN. Oct, 18, 1830. " By the mouth of two or three Witnesses, entry word shall he justified." SIR, It was my intention to have replied on Saturday last, to the letter of " Lysander," in your Bristolian of Wednesday previous; but being informed, that two or three of Mr. Howe's colleagues in office were " pregnant'* with important matter, in palliation of . those charges I brought against him, in my letter in your Bristolian of the Second instant—- I waited the result of their " deliveryj" in order that I might save you and myself trou- ble, by coupling my reply to their letter, with what I had to say to " Lysanderbut alas I though the poor things were in most distress- ful labour" for eight days and nights, I have just been informed by the obstetiic old laxly, who attended them " professionally," that notwithstanding the utmost. care was taken of them, and slops, candles, and eveiy other auxiliary that skill could suggest, was administered to them, their " conceptions" have proved abortions. Not so, however, with the more prolific Ex- chief, for let me assure yoUj - Sir, ihe 16 THE BRISTOL! At* U bantling that made his debut in the pages of your Bristolian of Wednesday last, under the signature of " Lysander " is the legitimate offspring of Mr. i homas Howe, who, for the two years last past, was the self appointed Chief Constable of Temple Ward, but now a Petty of the same J'hough it was obvious to every beholder, that toe baby emanated from a polluted source, I could not with so much certainty have affiliated it upon Mr Howe, had he not, together with some of hi Constabulary colleagues, usheced in his birth with the tnost uncontrolled festivities of the Bacchanalian orgies. So great indeed, was the joy on the occasion, that libations and potations were offered in profusion to the jolly God, and House's dram and gossip shop and " School for Scandal," and Sadler's depot for potent Red and " Blue Ruin," echoed with miithful vociferations. It is said, that this Scion is worthy of its parent stcck, possessing a precosity of talent far legerdemain ; and, in further proof of his being ' « a chip of the old block," is re maikable for his propensity to " g. 0 astray, speaking lies." As however, this young rogue was merely the amanne. nsis on the occasion referred to, I shall not hold him morally responsible for the bare- faced falsehoods prefixed to his name. 1 must therefore, sink " L\ sander" in Thomas Howe, Now Mr. Howe, it is with you, my old friend, that I h; ive to do. You have made Ly& ander" to say, that the letter, published j* the Bristolian of the 2d instant, signed " a Rate- payer,*' and the one in the same Num- ber, signed " Alcibiadeg," proceeded from ® ne and the same author— for an answer to tfus assertion, I shall refer you to the Editor, whose testimony, purchance you may prefer t » mine, I am " a Rate- payer," and to that letter I confine my observations in chief, re- serving to myself, however, the liberty of Stating at discretion, what I know also upon the subject of your culpability, with regard t » keeping the Watchmen out of their money, Ac. You say, that your conduct has been " deserving any thing but the unfounded for which t: outrage," you denounced hitss abuse heaped upon you bv • a Kate- paver.' " in no measured terms, and vehemently swore _ , . , ,•• , i , would Summon him ; but vou took To patley with you on this point, would be S), etHal care no, to do so< th„ ugh' the said a waste of time— I do, however, appeal to the victualler ^ wishing for an opportunity of ex- Public, whether, in my letter in the Bristolian P « ing your conduct to the Magistrates) , ' taunted vou with the nonperformance of of the 2d instant, I have, in any one instance, your contemptible threat. More 1 could descended to abuse or scurrility, and more- ! mention, but I forbear. I hope these Rate- over ( premising that mv statements therein [ Pf? rs who ^ f ® not. seen my letter of the 2d instant, will do so, in order that they may are true,) whether under the excited feelirgs which your unmanly and disgraceful conduct naturally inspired, I have not restrained my- self within the narrowest bounds of modera. tion, that might be expected from a being making pretensions to nothing superior to human nature ? My letter in question, is composed either of truth or falsehood, and lam ready and willing to put myself at issue with you by the severest test. Truth and Justice were both my object and end, and I defy you, Thomas Howe, to contradict one sentence in the said letter. It contains facts which I am prepared to prove on the oath of credible witnesses, and you know it! Although 1 can incomes', ably prove the truth of the whole of my letter, independently of jour late Petties, I could in a Court of Justice elicit from as many of them as would not withhold the truth, under the sanction of a Solemn Oa'. h, a confirmation of all that is stated to have taken place at the Rate Meet- ings. What mean you then, bv the unblush ing effrontery, in stating, that the letter in the Bristolian of tlie 2d instant, is " un- founded and abusive?" Is there any thing in it, Sir, that is not strictly relevant to the discharge of your late Public Duties r Have I in the slightest degree meddled with your private character ? Or have I not rather scrupulously adhered to the Apostolical in- junction? " touch not the unclean thing." I said in my letter already refered to, that I could multiply facts, and strange ones too, connected with your administration of your late office. One other fact, at least, I will mention. You know, Thomas Howe, that I can prove, that in your capacity as Chief Constable of Temple Ward, you entered the house of a Victualler in our Ward, in a state of drunkenness, and by acts and words, so misbehaved yourself in the professed dis- charge of your duty, that you were forcibly ejected from the house by the worthy Host, judge of the truth of mv statements, and look to their inteiests, lest they should ultimately have to pay for their neglect. Ft is not my province, Mr Howe, to defend " Alcibiades" from \ our lying attack, but as you have been pleased in your sapience to unite us. and as he is unaccountably silent on the subject, I will take leave to inform my readers, that the case as set forth in the letter of " Alcibiades," is a true and correct one ; and, if he does not at some early period develope the particulars, and challenge you, ( Mr. Howe,) to refute him, I will do so, to your dismay and the utter defeat of all those sorry subterfuges to which you have resorted, for the purpose of falsifying the tmth, and thereby deceiving the Public. I have not, not will I calumniate your character, neither shall you or any other man, not even " Lysander" your Lawyer, asperse mine with impunity; therefore, finally, 1 call upon you, Thomas Howe, to single out one sentence of my letter of the instant, or of this I am now writing, upon which to put your negaiive, if yuu dare do so, authen- ticating your act, by firing to the Editor your name ( not your mark) and 1 will immediately produce to the Public such proof, as will amply satisfy the unost sceptical reader of the truth of this extraordinary statement of facts. ! f you do not do so, your readeis will, © t course conclude, that you cannot. Choose your horn of the dilemma To you, Mr Editor, 1 have two apologies to make ; the first, for the prolixity of my style, for I possess not, like you, the happy knack of writing " multum in Parvo." lhe second is. that in the beginning of my letter, having set out in company with ) ou, I was imperceptibly drawn away into the company of l homas Howe, whom with yourself, ( par- don the association) I, for the present, bid farewell. « ' A RATE- PAYER." MEM.— I have received a note informiug me that " Alcibiades" is out of Town, and is not expected to return before the end of the rreek. J, A. MBM.— I have also received a letter from the fFard of Temple, relative to the communication of the flight Constable; but my correspondent ought to have Antrim that his favor vas valueless, because anonymous. /. 4, Mated aud Fublithed by JAolES ACLAND, ( Saws Pn » raiET » a axa EBITOR) at the BBIMOLUX © Mica, Bristeiiaa Ctiart, BridewtU Laae.
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