lost by a considerable majority. The Sheriff, however, decided that the
address was carried by _three to one_; but when a division was called
for, the Sheriff retired in haste from the meeting, amidst the yells and
groans of the multitude, and the Under-Sheriff actually threatened to
take Lord Cochrane and myself into custody, if we offered to address the
meeting any more.

The Seditious Meeting Act had not yet received the Royal Assent, but
these worthies knew the clauses which it contained, and the perpetual
Under-Sheriff, a Mr. Hollis, appeared determined to act upon it by
anticipation. Perhaps there never was such a disgraceful scene before
exhibited at a public meeting in England. The most foul, the most
unfair, the most outrageous, and most blackguard conduct was resorted to
by the ministerial tools and dependants of the county, amongst whom were
all the parsons, all the half-pay officers, and all the dependants of
the corrupt corporations of Andover and Winchester. A person of the
name of Loscomb, and another, Feston, of Andover, the former one of the
Andover corporation, the latter a half-pay lieutenant, were eminently
conspicuous as the brazen tools of those who called the meeting. Such a
scene of riot, confusion, and uproar had never, I believe, disgraced
a county meeting. These ministerial dependants appeared determined
to carry every thing with a high hand, now that they found laws were
passing to justify and protect arbitrary and corrupt power.

On the 12th of this month, the sailor Cashman was executed at the front
of Beckwith's, the gunmaker's, shop, on Snow-hill. Nothing will show the
distressed situation of the poor and friendless better than the answer
which Cashman made to the Judge, after he was found guilty, upon being
asked "why sentence of death should not be passed upon him." His
memorable words were:--