,,the ,,history ,,of ,,the ,,last       
,,trial ,,by ,,jury ,,for ,,atheism ,,in
 ,,england3  ,a ,fragment of            
,autobiography  ,submitted ,for ,the    
,perusal ,of ,her ,majesty's            
,attorney-,general ,and ,the ,british   
,clergy4  ,by ,george ,jacob ,holyoake  
,i was present in the court1 to witness 
the trial of ,george ,jacob ,holyoake4  
,i heard ,wooler and ,hone defend       
themselves successfully in #ahag2 but ,i
 would prefer to be declared guilty with
 ,holyoake to being acquitted on the    
ground of ,wooler and ,hone4--,richard  
,carlile4  ,,london3 ,,james ,,watson1  
#c1 ,,queen',s ,,head ,,passage1        
,,paternoster ,,row4 #ahej4  ,,to       
,,william ,,john ,,birch1 ,m4,a41  ,,of 
,,new ,,inn ,,hall1 ,,oxon4  ,,in ,,whom
 ,,free ,,discussion ,,has ,,found  ,,an
 ,,accomplished ,,defender ,,and        
,,munificent ,,friend2  ,,who ,,was     
,,first ,,to ,,help ,,us  ,,when ,a     
,,friend ,,is ,,twice ,a ,,friend1      
,,when ,,we ,,were ,,unknown ,,and      

,,struggling2  ,,this ,,history ,,of    
,,six ,,months ,,imprisonment           
,,preface4  ,the events1 more than half 
of which are newly narrated in this     
',history1' are recited from            
recollection4 ,it is not pretended that 
all the conversations took place with   
the brevity with which they are given   
here4 ,in the lapse of eight years there
 is much which ,i must have forgotten2  
but what ,i have told ,i distinctly     
remember1 and the actors living will    
not1 ,i think1 contradict it4  ,as1 by a
 creditable improvement in ,english law1
 the recommencement of prosecutions for 
7ir7religious opinion can originate with
 the ,attorney-,general alone1 ,i have  
ventured to hope that1 if this narrative
 should fall into the hands of that     
officer for the time being1 it may      
present some reasons to him why this    
',last ,trial by ,jury for ,atheism'    
should be the last4  ,there are some    
passages in these ,fragments over which 
some will be sad with me4 ,others will  

assume them to be written for effect2   
for such1 let me say1 they were not     
written at all4 ,these pages will leave 
me for the press with much more pleasure
 if ,i can believe that no one will     
connect them with me1 but read them as a
 posthumous record of bygone events4 ,at
 times ,i thought ,i would omit all     
incidents of feeling2 but ,i felt1 that 
if ,i did so the narrative would not    
represent the whole 7personal7 truth of 
these proceedings--and1 as they stand1  
they may serve to suggest to some a     
doubt of the correctness of the         
oft-repeated dictum of the ,rev4 ,robert
 ,hall1 that ',atheism is a bloody and a
 ferocious system1 which finds nothing  
above us to excite awe1 nor around us to
 awaken tenderness4'  ,whether these are
 sufficient reasons for the purpose1 ,i 
know not2 but this ,i know--they are the
 true ones4 ,as ,i very much dislike    
being an object of pity1 those will much
 mistake me who suppose that this       
narrative has been written to excite it4

 ,in my estimation1 imprisonment was a  
matter of conscience4 ,i neither        
provoked prosecution nor shrank from it2
 and ,i am now as far from desiring it  
as ,i trust ,i ever shall be from       
fearing it4 ,i do not pretend to despise
 public approval1 but ,i think it should
 be regarded as a contingent reward1 not
 as the sole motive of action2 for he   
who only works while the public 7always 
fickle in memory7 care to remember him1 
is animated by a very precarious        
patriotism4 ,as ,i have once1 before    
said1 it is an encouragement to me that 
others may profit by any public         
principle ,i may assist in maintaining3 
but my interest in it is personal also4 
,though no one else desired freedom1 it 
is enough for me that ,i desire it2 and 
,i would maintain the conflict for it1  
as best ,i could1 though no one else    
cared about it2 and1 as ,i choose to    
make the purchase1 ,i do not higgle     
about the price4 ,tyranny has its       
soldiers1 and why not ,freedom8 ,while  

thousands daily perish at the shrine of 
passion1 what is the pain of a sacrifice
 now and then for public principle or   
personal freedom8  ,g4 ,j4 ,h4     ,,the
 ,,history ,,of ,,the ,,last ,,trial    
,,by ,,jury ,,for ,,atheism4            
,,chapter ,i4--,,before ,,the           
,,imprisonment4  ,that day is chilled in
 my memory when ,i first set out for    
,cheltenham4 ,it was in ,december #ahdj4
 ,the snow had been frozen on the ground
 a fortnight4 ,there were three of us1  
,mrs4 ,holyoake1 ,madeline 7our first   
child71 and myself4 ,i had been residing
 in ,worcester1 which was the first     
station to which ,i had been appointed  
as a ,social ,missionary4 ,my salary    
7#afs4 per week7 was barely sufficient  
to keep us alive in summer4 ,in winter  
it was inherent obstinacy alone which   
made us believe that we existed4 ,i feel
 now the fierce blast which came in at  
the train windows from 'the fields of   
,tewkesbury1' on the day on which we    
travelled from ,worcester to            

,cheltenham4 ,the intense cold wrapped  
us round like a cloak of ice4  ,the shop
 lights threw their red glare over the  
snow-bedded ground as we entered the    
town of ,cheltenham1 and nothing but the
 drift and ourselves moved through the  
deserted streets4 ,when at last we found
 a fire we had to wait to thaw before we
 could begin to speak4 ,when tea was    
over we were-escorted to the house where
 we were to stay for the night4 ,i was  
told it was 'a friend's house4'         
,cheltenham is a fashionable town1 a    
watering1 visiting place1 where         
everything is genteel and thin4 ,as the 
parlours of some prudent house-wives are
 kept for show1 and not to sit in1 so in
 ,cheltenham numerous houses are kept   
'to be let1' and not to live in4 ,the   
people who belong to the apartments are 
like the supernumeraries on a stage1    
they are employed in walking over them4 
,their clothes are decent--but they     
cannot properly be said to wear them3   
they carry them about with them 7on     

their backs of course1 because that mode
 is most convenient7 but simply to show 
that they have such things4 ,in the same
 manner eating and drinking is partly   
pantomime1 and not a received reality4  
,such a house as ,i have suggested was  
the 'friend's house' to which we were   
conducted till lodgings could be found4 
,we were asked to sit by the kitchen    
fire on 'the bench in the corner1' and  
there we sat from eight till one        
o'clock1 without being asked to take    
anything to eat4 ,madeline1 deprived of 
her usual rest1 continued sucking at the
 breast till her mother was literally   
too exhausted to speak4 ,a neighbouring 
festivity kept my 'friends' up that     
night till two o'clock--up to which time
 we saw no prospect of bed or supper4   
,as we entered the house1 ,eleanor1 with
 a woman's prescience1 said ',george1   
you had better go and buy some food4'   
',buy food1' ,i replied1 in simplicity1 
'the people at this fine house will be  
outraged to see me bring in food4'      

,retribution was not far off4 ,i        
repented me of my credulity that night4 
,when at last ,i clearly comprehended   
that we were to have nothing to eat1 ,i 
proceeded to take affairs into my own   
hands1 and being too well assured of the
 insensibility of my host1 ,i did it in 
a way that ,i conceived suited to his   
capacity1 and began as follows3  ',we   
have talked all night about social      
progress1 and if you have no objection  
we will make some4 ,and if eating1' ,i  
added1 'be not an irregular thing in    
your house1 we will take some supper4'  
',i am very sorry to say1' he answered1 
'we have nothing to offer you4'         
',charge me bed and board while we are  
with you1' ,i rejoined1 'but let us have
 both4 ,you have bread1 ,i suppose8'    
',we have some rice bread4'  ',perhaps  
you will toast it4' ',will you have it  
toasted8  ',i will4 ,could you not make 
coffee8'  ',we have no coffee4'  ',tea8'
  ',we have no tea4' ',any water8'  ',no
 hot water4'  ',any butter8'  ',yes1 we 

have salt butter4'  ',then put some on  
the bread1' ,i added1 for he did not    
even propose to do that4 ,i had to      
dispute every inch of hospitality with  
him4 ,my 'friend1' ,mr4 ,v41 was an     
instance of that misplacement of which  
,plato speaks in his ',republic' ,what a
 capital ,conservative he would have    
made6 ,no innovation with him--not even 
into his own loaf6 ,i was obliged to    
take the initiative into the 'salt'     
butter4  ,after seeing the bread        
toasted1 and buttering it myself1 to    
make sure that it was buttered1 ,i put  
on my hat and went into the streets1 in 
search of material out of which to      
manufacture a cordial1 for eight hours  
had then elapsed since ,eleanor had had 
any sustenance1 and my good host's      
choice reserve of cold water did not    
seem quite adequate to revive her4      
,when ,i reached the dark streets1 to   
which ,i was so absolute a stranger1 not
 knowing where ,i stood on the slippery 
ground1 made so by frozen rain on a     

bedding of snow1 ,i had not gone 7or    
rather slipped7 far before ,i was fairly
 lost4 ,like the sense in a ,rousseauian
 love-letter1 ,i neither knew whence ,i 
came nor whither ,i was going1 and when 
,i succeeded in my errand it was at the 
last place at which ,i should wish to be
 found4  ,during my absence that        
voluptuous caterer1 'mine host1' whom ,i
 had left behind--whose counterpart     
,maginn must have had before him when he
 drew the portrait of                   
',quarantotti'--had proceeded so far as 
to boil some water4 ,the evening ended  
without inconsistency1 and the bed      
corresponded with the supper4  ,the next
 day ,i took lodgings1 where1 expecting 
nothing1 ,i was no longer disappointed4 
,but on this occasion1 profiting by the 
experience of the preceding night1 ,i   
went provided with a small stock of     
loaves and chocolate4 ,my stay in       
,cheltenham was more agreeable than was 
to be expected after such an            
introduction2 but ,i remember that ,i   

had to pay my expenses back again1 and  
though they only amounted to #abs41 ,i  
felt the want of them for a long time   
afterwards4 ,yet ,cheltenham was not    
without generous partizans1 but1 as is  
common in the incipiency of opinion1    
they were at that time among that class 
who had fewest means4 ,the experience   
here recounted was a sample of that     
frequently recurring1 but not exactly of
 the kind on which vanity is nurtured1  
as the reader will think as he reverts  
7from a speech to be recited7 to these  
incidents4 ,he who reads thus far will  
acquit me of any premeditation of       
disturbing the peace of the religious   
inhabitants of ,cheltenham1 for it is   
certainly the last town ,i should have  
selected as the scene of such an        
occurrence as the one which ,i have to  
narrate4  ,my next location was in a    
northern manufacturing town1 where ,i   
was treated like its iron-ware--case    
hardened4 ,my salary there of #cjs4 per 
week was a subject of frequent          

discussion by the members of the        
,branch4 ,for this sum ,i taught a ,day 
,school and lectured on ,sunday4 ,and as
 he who lives the life of a child all   
the week 7as he must do who teaches     
children to any purpose7 finds it hard  
to live that of a man on ,sunday1 my    
duties were wearying and perplexing4    
,those who grudged my salary made no    
sufficient allowance for that           
application necessary for the discharge 
of my duties--an application which often
 commenced long before they were up in  
the morning1 and continued long after   
their mechanical employment was over at 
night4 ,not comprehending myself1 at    
that time1 that they who work for the   
improvement of others must not calculate
 on their appreciation as an            
encouragement1 but as a result1 ,i was  
thrown into that unpleasant state in    
which my pride incited me to stop and my
 duty to go on4 ,it was not till        
subsequent to my return from ,glasgow1  
four years afterwards1 that ,i mastered 

the problem thus raised which so many   
have been ruined in solving4 ,though an 
,anti-,priest1 my treatment was that of 
a priest4 ,my congregation1 as is the   
case with most ,freethinkers1 objected  
to the pay of the priest1 when the true 
quarrel was with error1 and not with    
payment3 for if a man has the truth1 it 
is well that it should be his interest  
to hold it4 ,but ,dissent1 objecting to 
the pay of others1 has been left without
 pay itself--hence its apostles have    
been reduced to fight the lowest battles
 of animal wants1 when they should have 
been fighting for the truth4 ,dissent   
has too often paid its advocates the bad
 compliment of supposing1 that if placed
 within reach of competence they would  
either fall into indolence or hypocrisy4
 ,it has acted practically upon the     
hypothesis1 that the only possible way  
of ensuring their zeal and sincerity was
 to starve them--a policy which leaves  
progress to the mercy of accident4 ,for 
a long period the operation of this     

policy chilled me4 ,my initiation into  
affairs of progress was in company with 
men who estimated1 above all other      
virtues1 the virtue which worked for    
nothing4 ,they would denounce the       
patriotism of that man who accepted a   
shilling for making a speech1 although  
it had cost him more to compose it than 
those who heard it would probably give  
to save their country4 ,nine tenths of  
the best public men and women ,i have   
known1 have turned back at this point4  
,not any new conviction--not any bribe  
of the enemy1 but the natural though    
unwise revolt against being considered  
mendicants1 has forced them back into   
supineness1 indifference1 or even into  
the very ranks of oppression4 ,true1 ,i 
felt that he who labours with his brains
 is worthy of his hire as well as he who
 labours with his hands4 ,as often as ,i
 read a book or heard a lecture1 which  
threw new light on the paths of life1 ,i
 found that it not only relieved me from
 the dominion of ignorance1 but imparted

 to me the strength of intelligence4 ,i 
felt indebted to the author and speaker1
 for ,i found that knowledge was not    
only power1 but property4 ,i knew all   
this1 but painful years passed over me  
before ,i acquired the courage to offer 
what instruction ,i had to impart as an 
article of commercial value4 ,those who 
have encountered this kind of experience
 know that the feeling it engenders is  
one of indifference1 and that an unusual
 speech would arise in a cold sense of  
duty1 and not in wantonness or          
wickedness4 ,thus much will inform the  
reader of the circumstances under which 
,i spoke the alleged blasphemy in       
,cheltenham4  ,a fellow-missionary1 ,mr4
 ,charles ,southwell1 had1 in           
conjunction with ,mr4 ,chilton and ,mr4 
,field1 set up an ,atheistical          
periodical in ,bristol1 entitled the    
,oracle of ,reason--which the           
authorities attempting forcibly to put  
down1 ,mr4 ,southwell was sentenced to  
twelve months' imprisonment in ,bristol 

,gaol4 ,on a visit to him ,i walked     
ninety miles from ,birmingham to        
,bristol1 and as my way lay through     
,cheltenham1 ,i staid a night in that   
town to deliver a lecture on ',home     
,colonisation as a means of superseding 
,poor ,laws and ,emigration4' ,at the   
conclusion of the lecture ,i instructed 
the chairman to make the announcement1  
which ,i still make after my lectures1  
viz41 that any of the audience may put  
relevant questions or offer what        
objections they consider                
useful--whereupon a person stood up of  
the name of ,maitland1 a teetotaller1   
and sort of local preacher1 and         
complained that 'though ,i had told them
 their duty to man1 ,i had not told them
 of their duty to ,god1' and inquired   
'whether we should have churches and    
chapels in community8'  ,i answered     
thus3 ',i do not desire to have religion
 mixed up with an economical and secular
 subject1 but as ,mr4 ,maitland has     
introduced questions in reference to    

religion ,i will answer him frankly4    
,our national debt already hangs like a 
millstone round the poor man's neck1 and
 our national church and general        
religious institutions cost us1 upon    
accredited computation1 about twenty    
millions annually4 ,worship being thus  
expensive1 ,i appeal to your heads and  
your pockets whether we are not too poor
 to have a ,god8 ,if poor men cost the  
state as much1 they would be put like   
officers upon half-pay1 and while our   
distress lasts ,i think it would be wise
 to do the same thing with deity4 ,thus 
far ,i object1 as a matter of political 
economy1 to build chapels in            
communities4 ,if others want them they  
have themselves to please1 but ,i1 not  
being religious1 cannot propose them4   
,morality ,i regard1 but ,i do not      
believe there is such a thing as a      
,god499 ,the pulpit says ,search the    
,scriptures1 and they who are thus      
trepanned get imprisoned in ,bristol    
jail1 like my friend ,mr4 ,southwell4   

,for myself1 ,i flee the ,bible as a    
viper1 and revolt at the touch of a     
,christian4'  ,perhaps this reply was   
indecorous1 but it was nothing more1 and
 as it was delivered in a tone of       
conversational freedom1 it produced only
 quiet amusement on the meeting4 ,the   
next day ,i continued my journey to     
,bristol4 ,a day or two after ,i        
received the ,cheltenham ,chronicle1    
commonly called the ,rev4 ,francis      
,close's paper1 it being the organ of   
his party1 in which ,i read the         
following paragraph--written with that  
exaggerated virulence which ,archdeacon 
,hare has subsequently deprecated as the
 bane of religious journalism1 but which
 at that time was considered as a holy  
ornament3--       99 ,i do not remember 
using this phrase1 but as the witnesses 
reported it perhaps it was so2 but ,i   
still incline to the      opinion that  
it was an expression they fell upon in  
stating      their impressions of the   
meeting to their employers1 and all     

working in one office1 they fell into   
one story1 either      through          
inadvertence or from precaution4        
,atheism and ,blasphemy4--,on ,tuesday  
evening last a person named ,holyoake1  
from ,manchester1 787 delivered a       
lecture on ,socialism 7or1 as it has    
been more appropriately termed1         
devilism71 at the ,mechanics'           
,institution4 ,after attacking the      
,church of ,england and religion        
generally for a considerable time1 he   
said he was open to any question that   
might be put to him4 ,a teetotaller     
named ,maitland then got up1 and said   
the lecturer had been talking a good    
deal about our duty to man1 but he      
omitted to mention our duty towards     
,god1 and he would be glad to know if   
there were any chapels in the community8
 ,the ,socialist then replied that he   
professed no religion at all1 and       
thought they were too poor to have any4 
,he did not believe there was such a    
being as a ,god1 and impiously remarked 

that if there was99 he would have the   
deity served the same as government     
treated the subalterns1 by placing him  
upon half-pay4 ,with many similar       
blasphemous and awful remarks1 which we 
cannot sully our columns by repeating1  
the poor misguided wretch continued to  
address the audience4 ,to their lasting 
shame1 be it spoke1 a considerable      
portion of the company applauded the    
miscreant during the time he was giving 
utterance to these profane opinions4    
,we have three persons in our employ who
 are ready to verify on oath the        
correctness of the above statements4 ,we
 therefore hope those in authority will 
not suffer the matter to rest here1 but 
that some steps will immediately he     
taken to prevent any further publicity  
to such diabolical sentiments4--,ed4    
,cheltenham ,chronicle499       99 ,this
 is an interpolation4  ,some have       
censured the openness of my answer to   
,mr4 ,maitland as being inexpedient4 ,it
 is not impossible to justify it on that

 ground1 but ,i have an aversion to do  
it4 ,expediency has nothing to do with  
what a man shall say4 ,expediency may   
close the mouth1 but it has no power    
over the speech if the mouth once opens4
 ,a man may keep silence if he chooses1 
but if he does speak he has no          
alternative but to speak that which is  
frank and true4 ,but at that time there 
were political reasons why ,i should not
 evade the question put to me4 ,the ,odd
 ,fellow of ,mr4 ,hetherington 7under   
the editorship of ,w4 ,j4 ,linton7 had  
shortly before contained an able article
 beginning thus3--  ,the world need not 
be much frightened at the present race  
of ,socialists4 ,however heinous their  
doctrines may be thought1 there need be 
no fear1 they will not act in too close 
accordance with them4 ,for ourselves1   
having been among them at various times1
 we have never yet been able to discover
 any certain marks1 whether of manner1  
of opinion1 or of conduct1 whereby to   
distinguish them from the mass of       

professing ,christians4 ,however        
heterodox their innermost sentiments1   
they usually maintain as decent an      
appearance of conformity with custom as 
the most worldly and orthodox could     
desire4  ,this was a character which no 
progressive party could live with1 and  
as the hypocrisy here charged upon us   
was generally believed1 and not wholly  
without reason1 it became necessary     
either to give up the party or refute   
the accusation4 ,the attack on ,mr4     
,owen's friends1 by the ,bishop of      
,exeter in the ,house of ,lords1 had    
been evaded1 not met1 and a noble       
opportunity1 such as bigotry seldom     
affords to a rising party1 had been     
suffered to pass away unused4 ,the enemy
 triumphed4 ,in this very town of       
,cheltenham a young poet1 named ,sperry1
 who betrayed freethink-ing tendencies1 
had been called upon to recant4 ,he did 
so1 and then he was treated with        
contempt by those who intimidated him4  
,they first destroyed his moral         

influence1 and then despised him4 ,i had
 therefore sufficient public reasons for
 not tempting a similar fate4 ,if ,i had
 refused to reply1 it would have been   
said ,i held opinions too horrible to   
avow4 ,had ,i evaded the answer ,i      
should have been considered a           
time-server1 and if ,i answered frankly 
there were the legal consequences in    
prospect4 ,i was not very much skilled  
in policy1 but ,i knew this much that   
when a man cannot take care of          
consequences1 he ought to take care of  
the credit of his cause4 ,a little      
anticipating this history ,i may say    
that the expediency of the course ,i    
took1 if the expediency must be         
defended1 was shown in the altered tone 
of the authorities1 both in ,cheltenham 
and ,gloucester1 after my trial4        
,instead of that contempt with which    
persons holding ,socialist opinions are 
treated1 there was a somewhat respectful
 recognition of them4 ,however crude    
might be considered my defence of my    

views1 nothing escaped me that could be 
distorted into a willingness to avoid   
any suffering at the expense of my      
adherence to the principles ,i had      
adopted4 ,many persons who would not    
have spoken to me before came and       
expressed regret at what had happened1  
and ,i met with many instances of regard
 from persons who had formerly despised 
those with whom ,i acted4  ,i was       
indebted to the ,odd-,fellow of ,july   
#bc1 then edited by ,eben ,jones1 author
 of ',studies of ,sensation and ,event1'
 for the fairest statement of my conduct
 and of the point in question1 which the
 press gave4 ,it was thus expressed3--  
,we cannot refrain from saying1 that    
under the peculiar circumstances1 ,mr4  
,holyoake 7presuming his disbelief in a 
,god to be sincere7 could not have said 
other than he did say1 and at the same  
time have continued honest4 ,it is true 
he was not asked1 ',do you believe in a 
,god8' but a question was put to him    
which assumed his belief in a ,god1 and 

had he not testified at once his        
disbelief1 he would have sanctioned the 
false assumption3 and if not a liar1    
would have been at least the permitter  
of a lie2 between which is no           
distinction recognised by an honourable 
man4 ,in arguing thus we would not      
express any sympathy whatever with ,mr4 
,holyoake's atheism1 we are merely      
concerned to show that it was not ,mr4  
,holyoake's right alone1 but absolutely 
his duty1 to say that 'he did not       
believe in a ,god4' ,it was his duty1 if
 it be the duty of man to be honest2 he 
could not have spoken otherwise1 unless 
he had 'lied against his heart1' and    
lied towards mankind4  ,the next number 
of the aforesaid ,cheltenham ,chronicle 
brought me this further notice3--       
,holyoake the ,blasphemous ,socialist   
,lecturer4--,in reference to a paragraph
 which appeared in the last ,chronicle  
regarding this monster1 the magistrates 
read the article alluded to1 and        
expressed their opinion that it was a   

clear case of blasphemy4 ,in order to   
check the further progress of his       
pernicious doctrines1 the superintendent
 of police was ordered to use every     
exertion to bring him to justice4  ,on  
reading this paragraph ,i lost no time  
in setting out for ,cheltenham1 to hold 
a public meeting and justify myself to  
the town4 ,foot-sore and weary--for the 
journey was more than thirty miles1 and 
the day very hot--,i reached ,cheltenham
 on the #ast of ,june1 and proceeded as 
privately as a 'monster' could to my    
friends the ,adamses4 ,the next night ,i
 slid like sleep into the meeting1 lest 
the police should prevent me from       
addressing it4 ,mr4 ,leech1 a leading   
,chartist1 presided1 and the meeting was
 addressed by ,messrs4 ,parker1 jun41   
,geo4 ,adams1 ,w4 ,bilson1 and ,j4 ,b4  
,lear4 ,the ,chartists of ,cheltenham at
 that time held possession of the       
,mechanics' ,institution1 and they were 
threatened with the loss of it1 if they 
let it to me to speak in any more4 ,but 

as ,i required it in self-defence they  
generously disregarded the menace1 and  
permitted me the use of it4 ,my friends 
in the distant town of                  
,newcastle-upon-,tyne afterwards        
gracefully acknowledged this kindness by
 making a collection for ,mrs4          
,holberry1 the wife of a ,sheffield     
,chartist who had perished in prison4   
,before ,i had been long in the meeting1
 ,superintendent ,russell came in with  
about a dozen men1 who were arranged on 
each side the door1 and their glazed    
hats formed a brilliant1 but a dubious  
back-ground for a meeting on            
,free-,discussion4 ,i spoke an hour     
after they came in4 ,so rare an audience
 was not to be thrown away1 and ,i      
thought we might convert some of them4  
,at the conclusion ,superintendent      
,russell1 who had the politeness to wait
 till we had done1 intimated that he had
 instructions to apprehend me4 ,i asked 
for his warrant4 ,he said he had none4  
,it was in vain that ,i protested       

against the irregularity of the         
proceeding4 ,he replied that his        
instructions were imperative upon       
him--and it was thereupon arranged that 
,i should walk down to the station with 
,mr4 ,hollis1 a well-known gun maker of 
,cheltenham1 and there1 the meeting     
following1 we arrived in procession     
between eleven and twelve o'clock4  ,to 
the truth1 it is no great proof a       
posteriori of a man's extravagance1 that
 he should be involved in legal         
proceedings in ,cheltenham on account of
 freedom of speech4 ,owing to priestly  
and conventional influences1 that town  
will furnish a jury who would1 under    
direction1 bring in any man guilty of   
blasphemy who boiled his tea-kettle on a
 ,sunday4 ,not long before the time now 
spoken of1 a ,mormon preacher1 holding  
forth there1 happened to say that the   
,elements of ,euclid were as true as the
 ,bible3 and for this he was indicted   
for blasphemy1 and was only saved from  
imprisonment by the grand jury 7who must

 have had infidel tendencies7 throwing  
out the bill4  ,on the morning after my 
apprehension ,i was taken before the    
,rev4 ,dr4 ,newell1 ,r4 ,capper1 and ,j4
 ,overbury1 ,esquires1 magistrates of   
,cheltenham4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,newell    
ought to have had the pride1 if not the 
decency1 to have kept away4  ,the       
,cheltenham ,chronicle reported that'   
,george ,jacob ,holyoake1 who was       
described as a ,socialist lecturer1 and 
as the editor of the ,oracle of ,reason1
 was charged with delivering atheistical
 and blasphemous sentiments at the      
,mechanics' ,institution1 on the evening
 of the #bdth of ,may4 ,the prisoner had
 been apprehended last night1 after     
delivering another lecture at the same  
place4 ,the affair appeared to have     
caused great sensation1 and several     
persons attended at the office anxious  
to hear the examination4 ,amongst the   
number were some individuals who1       
without the blush of shame mantling     
their cheeks1 acknowledged themselves   

friends of the accused4'  ,mr4 ,bubb1 a 
local solicitor1 a particularly gross   
and furious man1 then said--',i attend  
to prefer the charge of blasphemy1 and  
,i shall take my stand on the common    
unwritten law of the land4 ,there have  
been a variety of statutes passed for   
punishing blasphemy1 but these statutes 
in no way interfere with the common     
unwritten law4 7,mr4 ,capper nodded     
assent4799 ,any person who denies the   
existence or providence of ,god is      
guilty of blasphemy1 and the law has    
annexed to that offence imprisonment1   
corporal punishment1 and fine4 ,i shall 
give evidence of the facts1 and ,i shall
 ask that he be committed for trial1 or 
required to find bail for his           
appearance4 ,the offence is much        
aggravated by his having put forth a    
placard1 announcing a lecture on a      
subject completely innocent1 and having 
got together a number of persons1 has   
given utterance to those sentiments     
which are an insult to ,god and man4'   

99 ,mr4 ,bubb took his stand on the     
common law because his      object was  
to make it a sessions case1 and to take 
it out      of the statuary law1 which  
7#i  #aj ,will4 #c1 c4 #cb7 would       
have required that information of the   
words spoken should be      laid before 
a justice of the peace within four days 
from      their utterance1 and would    
likewise have implied a trial at        
the assizes4  ,the assertion that ,i had
 employed duplicity in choosing my      
subject was quite gratuitous4           
,addressing the ,bench1 ,i asked whether
 it was legal in these cases to         
apprehend persons without the authority 
of a warrant8  ,mr4 ,capper replied1    
',any person in the meeting would be    
justified in taking you up without the  
authority of a warrant1' which showed   
that the ,bench were better read in     
,bigotry than in ,blackstone4 ,i said it
 was customary in other towns1 where    
bigotry existed to a greater degree even
 than it did there1 for information to  

be laid and a regular notice served4    
,mr4 ,capper said1 ',we refuse to hold  
an argument with a man professing the   
abominable principle of denying the     
existence of a supreme ,being1' ,this   
was not a very legal way of getting rid 
of my objections1 but it answered in    
,cheltenham4  ,two witnesses1 ,james    
,bartram and ,william ,henry ,pearce1   
both of the ,chronicle office1 were     
adduced to report the words that formed 
the ground of the indictment4 ,neither  
of them could recollect anything else   
but the objectionable words reported in 
their own paper1 and to these they did  
not swear positively1 but only to the   
'best of their belief4' ,mr4 ,pearce was
 not produced at the trial at the       
,assizes1 he having no local reputation 
but that of a dog-fancier and fighter1  
which did not render him a creditable   
authority on matters pertaining to      
religion4 ,bartram's sister was a       
,socialist1 and she came to me some     
years after1 in ,manchester1 to         

apologise for the disgrace brought upon 
her family by the weakness or the       
ignorance of her brother4  ,mr4         
,overbury said he considered the case   
satisfactorily proved1 and added1       
',whether you are of no religion is of  
very little consequence to us1 but your 
attempt to propagate the infamous       
sentiment that there is no ,god1 is     
calculated to produce disorder and      
confusion1 and is a breach of the       
peace4' ,this was the remark of an      
ill-informed politician rather than of a
 ,christian4  ,being required to enter  
into my own recognizances of ,l#ajj1 and
 find two sureties of ,l#ej each1 ,mr4  
,partridge became one1 and ,mr4 ,henry  
,fry1 editor of the ,educational        
,circular1 offered himself as the other4
 ,but the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,newell objected to
 ,mr4 ,fry's bail1 on the ground that he
 did not swear positively that he was   
worth ,l#ej when all his debts were     
paid4 ,he swore only that 'to the best  
of his belief he was so4 ,i reminded the

 ,bench that they had accepted the      
evidence of the witnesses against me on 
the same ground1 namely 'the best of    
their belief4' ,hereupon the ,rev4 ,dr4 
,newell1 with an air of outraged        
morality1 exclaimed ',come1 come6 we'll 
have no quibbling4'  ,i answered that ,i
 did not propose to quibble1 for if that
 had been to my taste ,i might have     
avoided standing there at that moment4  
,mr4 ,bubb then interjected that he     
should demand twenty-four hours' notice 
of bail4 ,another gentleman then offered
 himself1 whom ,i desired to sit down   
and let the ,bench take their own       
course4 ,this indifference with regard  
to the ,bench incensed them very much4  
,mr4 ,capper said1 ',even the heathens  
acknowledged the existence of a ,deity4 
,if you entertain the same pernicious   
opinion on your death-bed you will be a 
bold man indeed4 ,but you are only      
actuated by a love of notoriety4' ,i    
only answered1 ',why do you address me  
thus1 since you will not allow me to    

reply8' and ,i turned away repeating to 
myself the words of ,sir ,thomas        
,browne--',there is a rabble amongst the
 gentry as well as the commonalty2 a    
sort of plebeian heads1 whose fancy     
moves with the same wheel as these3 men 
in the same level with mechanics1 though
 their fortunes do somewhat gild their  
infirmities1 and their purses compound1 
for their follies4'  ,but ,i ought to   
say that during these proceedings the   
people in the court1 of juster feeling  
than the magistrates1 frequently        
expressed their disapprobation of the   
speeches made to me4  ,mr4 ,capper's    
assertion that ,i was only actuated by a
 love of notoriety1 were just the words 
to do me injury4 ,the respectable people
 near1 and the intelligent people at a  
distance1 would believe the magistrate  
and disbelieve the sceptic1 who had no  
friends to rebut the imputation4 ,the   
vulgar bearing of this brutal old man   
lingered long in my memory as the most  
distinct thing of these proceedings4 ,i 

should have thought less of it had it   
not come from an old man4 ,the aged     
always inspire me with reverence1 in    
their kindly aspects4 ,they are the     
links which nature perpetuates between  
old time and our time--the human        
chroniclers of an experience the young  
can never know4 ,they have followed the 
hearse of the old world1 and are the    
legatees of ,time1 who has bequeathed to
 them his secrets and his conquests1    
which they in their turn distribute to  
us4 ,when living at ,islington1 in      
#ahdh1 ,i frequently passed1 but not    
without sadness1 nor sometimes without  
tears1 an old man who stood near the    
,merlin's ,cave to beg4 ,he resembled   
one whom ,i cannot name4 ,i could see on
 his brow the fresh traces of a struggle
 still going on between dignity and     
destitution4 ,and ,i often gave him the 
price of the biscuit intended for my    
dinner1 in the secret hope we all have  
in a kind act that some one else may    
repeat it to those we love2 and ,i      

indulged the hope that others might     
approach with the same respectful       
feelings him to whom ,i have alluded1 if
 ever1 with untamed pride and broken    
heart1 he should stand in his grey hairs
 on the high way to beg--which ,i have  
dreaded through so many years4  ,when   
taken back to the station-house1        
,captain ,lefroy1 who was at the head of
 the police1 introduced me to ,mr4      
,pinching1 surgeon of the same corps4   
,the captain1 in a gentlemanly way1     
inquired if ,i would allow ,mr4         
,pinching to reason with me on my       
opinions8 ,i said1 ',certainly4' ,mr4   
,pinching asked me the irrelevant       
question ',did ,i believe in ,jesus     
,christ8' and began a dry1 historical   
argument to prove that there was the    
same evidence for the existence of      
,jesus ,christ as for that of ,henry the
 ,fourth4 ,i said1 ',the argument is    
unnecessary with me4 ,i do not care to  
argue whether he existed or not4 ,my    
inquiry is not whether he lived1 but    

what he said4' ,mr4 ,pinching's next    
speech was delivered with an air of     
sharp authority1 and he began to address
 me rather rudely4  ,he asked me was it 
not ,robert ,owen who made me an        
atheist8 ,i replied1 ,mr4 ,owen himself 
was not an atheist4 ,for myself1 ,i had 
not become so till after the            
imprisonment of ,mr4 ,southwell1 which  
had led me to inquire into the grounds  
of religious opinion more closely than  
,i had before done1 and it had ended in 
my entire disbelief4  ,mr4 ,pinching now
 became impatient and abusive1 allowing 
me no opportunity of replying1 and ,i   
said ',stop6 stop6 sir1 you must not    
treat me as a prisoner if you intend me 
to hear you4 ,unless you converse with  
me upon equal terms ,i shall not answer 
you4' ,lefroy laughed1 and said1 ',come6
 come6 ,pinching1 ,i think you are not  
quite fair4 ,after this ,mr4 ,pinching  
became more abusive1 and ,i turned      
away--when he ended the conversation by 
saying1 ',i am only sorry the day is    

gone by when we could send you and ,owen
 of ,lanark to the stake instead of to  
,gloucester gaol4'  ,not allowed to wait
 twenty-four hours to see if ,i could   
obtain bail1 ,i was soon after sent off 
to ,gloucester1 nine miles away1 the    
same afternoon1 where the difficulty of 
negotiating my release was so much      
increased that it took me a fortnight to
 do it4  ,after my conversation with    
,mr4 ,pinching ,i was shut up in a very 
filthy place with a lousy man4 ,i was   
handcuffed with small old irons that    
pinched my wrists1 and ,i begged to have
 another pair of handcuffs put on1 which
 was done3 then ,i was made to walk     
through ,cheltenham town and suburbs1   
and afterwards through ,gloucester city1
 with the hand irons on4 ,as ,i had     
walked thirty miles to be apprehended1  
they had no reason to suspect me of     
making my escape2 nor was it customary  
to handcuff prisoners conveyed to       
,gloucester on foot4 ,in my case it was 
done to pain and degrade me4  ,a        

memorial of a public meeting1 sent from 
the town of ,cheltenham to the ,house of
 ,commons1 on this subject1 stated      
',that notwithstanding ,mr4 ,holyoake   
offered no resistance to any officer or 
procedure1 and was at the same time in  
very delicate health and much exhausted1
 yet it was deemed necessary to lock    
both his hands in irons and make him    
walk to ,gloucester--a distance of near 
nine miles--on a most sultry day1 but on
 the way thither his friends interfered 
and obtained leave for him to ride1 on  
condition only that they should pay his 
expenses as well as the expenses of two 
policemen to accompany him4' ,and it may
 be added that though ,i sat an hour at 
the station1 waiting for the train1 my  
hands were not unlocked4  ,the same     
memorial also alleged ',that the conduct
 of the magistrates during the          
proceedings indicated a predisposition  
to punish ,mr4 ,holyoake1 independently 
of any evidence which he might have     
offered in defence of his own conduct4' 

,the ,member for ,bath1 to whom this    
memorial was entrusted1 paid to it the  
most generous attention1 and immediately
 returned the following reply3--        
,london1 ,june #bcrd1 #ahdb4            
,sir1--,the petition you sent me is of a
 nature that demands serious inquiry1   
and ,i thought ,i should best discharge 
my duty towards the petitioners and ,mr4
 ,holyoake by at once addressing myself 
to ,sir ,james ,graham4 ,he has very    
promptly taken up the inquiry1 and ,i   
have no doubt but that substantial      
justice will be done4 ,if1 however1 the 
petitioners should hereafter deem that  
justice has not been done1 ,i can       
present their petition after the inquiry
 which has been undertaken by the ,home 
,secretary has been closed4 ,i have     
taken this liberty with the petition on 
my own responsibility1 hoping that the  
petitioners will here trust to my       
discretion1 and they for the moment will
 put confidence in my judgment4 ,i will 
write you word so soon as ,i hear from  

the ,home ,secretary1 who has now the   
petition in his hands for the purpose of
 immediately instituting a searching    
inquiry4  ,i am1 sir1 your obedient     
servant1  ,mr4 ,h4 ,fry4 ,j4 ,a4        
,roebuck4  ,the committal the police    
bore with them was to the following     
effect3--  ,gloucestershire to wit4--,to
 all and every of the constables and    
other officers of the peace for the said
 county1 and to the keeper of the gaol  
at ,gloucester in the said county--     
,whereas ,george ,jacob ,holyoake is now
 brought before us1 three of ,her       
,majesty's ,justices of the ,peace in   
and for the said county1 and charged1 on
 the oaths of ,james ,bertram and       
,william ,henry ,pearce1 with having1 on
 the twenty-forth day of ,may last1 at  
the parish of ,cheltenham in the said   
county1 wickedly and profanely uttered1 
made use of1 and proclaimed1 in the     
presence of a public assembly of men1   
women1 and children1 then and there     
assembled1 certain impious and          

blasphemous words against ,god1 and of  
and concerning the ,christian religion1 
to wit1 ',that he was of no religion at 
all1' and 'that he did not believe there
 was such a thing as a ,god1' and 'that 
if he could have his way he would place 
the ,deity on half-pay1 as the          
government of this country did the      
subaltern officers1' against the peace  
of our lady the ,queen1 her crown and   
dignity4 ,and whereas we1 the said      
justices1 have required the said ,george
 ,jacob ,holyoake to become bound in the
 sum of one hundred pounds1 and to find 
two sufficient sureties in the sum of   
fifty pounds each1 conditioned for the  
appearance of the said ,george ,jacob   
,holyoake at the next ,quarter ,sessions
 of the peace1 to be holden at          
,gloucester1 in and for the said county1
 and then and there to answer to any    
bill of indictment that may be preferred
 against him for his said offence1 which
 he hath neglected to do4  ,these are   
therefore in ,her ,majesty's name to    

command you1 and every of you the said  
constables1 forthwith safely to convey  
and deliver into the custody of the     
keeper of the said gaol the body of the 
said ,george ,jacob ,holyoake4  ,and    
you1 the said keeper1 are hereby        
required to receive the said ,george    
,jacob ,holyoake into your said custody1
 and him safely keep until the said next
 general ,quarter ,sessions of the      
peace1 to be holden at ,gloucester1 in  
and for the said county1 or until he    
become bound and finds such sureties as 
aforesaid1 or until he shall be thence  
delivered by due course of law4 ,and for
 your so doing this shall be to you and 
every of you a sufficient warrant4      
,given under our hands and seals the    
third day of ,june1 in the year of our  
,lord ,one ,thousand ,eight ,hundred and
 ,forty-two4  ,robt4 ,capper1 ,j4 ,b4   
,newell1 ,joseph ,overbury4             
,twenty-four hours' notice of bail to be
 given4  ,i hereby certify that the     
above is a true 'copy' of a warrant1 by 

virtue of which the within named ,george
 ,jacob ,holyoake was brought into      
custody the #crd day of ,june1 #ahdb4   
,witness my hand1  ,thomas ,moore1      
,clerk to the county gaol of            
,gloucester4   ,some of the magistrates 
characterised the speech for which ,i   
was committed as ',felony1' 'a breach of
 the peace1' etc41 and ,i was told that 
my committal was made out for 'felony4' 
,serious comments were made thereupon by
 the public4 ,able strictures on the    
subject were made by ',philo            
,publicola1' in the ,weekly ,dispatch4  
,but the magistrates grew wiser as they 
grew cooler1 and on the copy of the     
committal subsequently furnished to me1 
the charge of felony did not appear4  ,a
 very curious circumstance deserves     
mentioning here4 ,the magistrates being 
censured in the ,house of ,commons for  
their 'irregularities' in my case 7as   
will be explained in my defence further 
on7 an attempt was made to fix the blame
 on ,mr4 ,russell1 superintendent of the

 police4 ,this induced me to address the
 following letter to the editor of the  
,cheltenham ,free ,press3--             
,sir1--,observing an attempt has been   
made in ,parliament by the ,hon4 ,craven
 ,berkley to fix the blame of my 'harsh 
treatment' on the constables of your    
town1 and to implicate ,superintendent  
,russell1 ,i beg to say that after my   
committal ,i never saw ,mr4 ,russell1   
and never once said1 or suspected1 that 
the harshness exercised towards me1     
while ostensibly in his custody1        
originated with him4 ,his courtesy to me
 on the night of my apprehension1 of    
which ,i retain a lively sense1 forbids 
such a conclusion4  ,i shall be glad if 
you will insert this in your next       
number4 ,i can never consent to purchase
 public sympathy by a silence which may 
unjustly sacrifice any person's         
interest4 ,i was justified in making the
 complaints ,i have1 but would rather   
they were for ever unredressed than that
 an innocent man should suffer4         

,birmingham1 ,july #cj1 #ahdb4 ,g4      
,jacob ,holyoake4  ,soon after ,mr4     
,russell left the corps1 and appears to 
have been offered up by the magistrates 
as a sacrifice for the irregularities   
they had committed4  ,on my arrival my  
pockets were searched1 and even my      
pocket-book and letters taken from me4  
,this ,i felt not only as an indignity1 
but also as a breach of faith4 ,before  
leaving ,cheltenham1 and when in        
communication with my friends1 ,i       
inquired if my papers would be taken    
from me at ,gloucester1 and the officers
 answered ',no1' 7but they must have    
known differently74 ,trusting their     
answer1 however1 ,i brought with me     
papers ,i should not otherwise have     
brought4 ,perhaps ,i was fevered after  
my walk1 but the cell ,i was put into   
gave me a new sense4 ,there had been    
times when ,i had wished for a sixth    
sense1 but this was not the sense ,i    
coveted1 for it was a sense of          
suffocation4 ,the bed was so filthy that

 ,i could not lie down1 and sat on the  
side all night4 ,when taken into the    
general room next morning the prisoners 
surrounded me1 exclaiming1' ,what are ye
 come for8' ,as ,i made no reply1       
another observed1 ',we always tells one 
another1' ',oh6 blasphemy1' ,i replied4 
',what's that1' said one4 ',aren't you  
'ligious8' said another4  ,but as these 
rustics were happily unacquainted with  
doctrinal piety1 they said nothing rude2
 and seeing my loaf unbroken1 and that  
,i could not eat1 ',here1' said four or 
five at once1 'will you have some of    
this tea1 zir8'--which was mint-tea1 the
 reward of some extra work1 and the     
nicest thing they had to offer4  ,when  
the chaplain of the gaol1 the ,rev4     
,robert ,cooper1 came to see me1 ,i told
 him that before ,i took anything from  
him for my soul1 ,i wanted something    
from him for my defence2 and ,i demanded
 my note book and papers4 ,mr4 ,samuel  
,jones1 a visiting magistrate1 brought  
me a few pencil notes which ,i had made 

during my examination in ,cheltenham and
 some private papers1 but he withheld   
many others relating to matters of      
opinion1 saying that he 'did not think  
them necessary to my defence4' ,the     
clergyman has a veto on all books       
admitted1 and of a list which ,i gave   
him1 which ,i wanted to read for my     
trial1 he only allowed me thirteen4 ,he 
said the others 'were of an unchristian 
character1' and he could not let me have
 them4 ',i told him ,i was not going to 
make an orthodox defence4 ,he would not 
relax1 so ,i would not have any         
spiritual consolation1 and we lived on  
very indifferent terms4  ,one day ,mr4  
,bransby ,cooper1 and ,mr4 ,samuel      
,jones 7just mentioned71 both old       
magistrates1 came to visit me4 ,mr4     
,jones1 ,i was told1 had at one time    
been a preacher among the ,methodists4  
,he told me he would be kind to me1 but 
all his kindness was religious          
kindness--the worst kindness ,i have    
ever experienced4 ,i was then the sole  

occupant of the ,queen's evidence side  
of the prison1 a place ,i had chosen as 
,i preferred to be alone4 ,i had a large
 yard and all the cells to myself4 ,in  
this solitary place these magistrates   
visited me4 ,after teazing me with      
,leslie for a long time1 ,mr4 ,bransby  
,cooper concluded thus--',now6          
,holyoake1 you are a ,deist--are you    
not8' ,i shook my head4 ',you cannot be 
an atheist1' he continued1 'you don't   
look like one4' ,he said this1 ,i       
suppose1 seeing no horns on my head1 and
 no eyes on my elbows1 as he expected4  
,i answered that ,i felt very           
unpleasantly how much ,i was in their   
power1 and had therefore some reason to 
desire to oblige them4 ,though sorry to 
say what might outrage them or look like
 obstinacy1 yet out of respect to my own
 conscience ,i must say that ,i was an  
atheist4 ,upon these they both flew into
 indignant revulsions1 and shouted 'a   
fool6 a fool6' till the roof rang4      
,capt4 ,mason 7the governor71 who       

accompanied them1 turned away a few     
paces1 with the air of one not caring to
 be witness of so much rudeness4        
99 ,see ,report of ,gloucester ,trinity 
,sessions in the county      papers of  
that period4  ,before leaving they said 
of course ,i should employ counsel to   
defend me4 ,i answered1 ',no1 ,i should 
defend myself as well as ,i was able4   
,barristers were not good at stating a  
case of conscience4' ,they urged1 they  
even coaxed me to abandon the idea of   
defending myself2 but finding me not to 
be deterred1 they threatened me that it 
would aggravate my case--reminded me of 
,hone and others1 and said that the     
judge would put me down and not hear me4
 ,this menace1 as will be seen          
hereafter1 did me great harm4 ,they     
reported my determination at the        
,trinity ,sessions as though it was a   
matter desirable to be averted4  ,mr4   
,bransby ,cooper was a brother of ,sir  
,astley ,cooper4 ,he was formerly member
 for ,gloucester1 and when he suspected 

that ,i did not regard his dignity      
sufficiently1 he would slide in some    
remark about 'his friend' ,sir ,james   
,graham1 who was then ,secretary of     
,state for the ,home ,department4       
,bransby ,cooper was the senior         
magistrate at this time--a man of       
venerable and commanding aspect1        
generous to a fault in matters of       
humanity1 harsh to a fault in matters of
 religion4 ,on his way through the city1
 old women would way-lay him to beg4    
,first raising his stick against        
them--then threatening to commit them as
 vagrants--they fled from him in mock   
terror1 but knowing the generous        
feelings of the man they returned again1
 and before he reached home he would    
empty his pockets among them4 ,one      
minute he would growl at me like an     
unchained tiger--the next he would utter
 some word of real sympathy1 such as    
came from no one else1 and at the end of
 my imprisonment ,i parted from him with
 something of regret4 ,he had the voice 

of ,stentor1 and though at first his    
savage roar shook me1 at last ,i        
acquired an artistic liking for it1 and 
his voice was so grand that ,i came to  
the conclusion that he had a natural    
right to be a brute4 ,the old man1 after
 his fashion1 laboured very hard for my 
conversion4 ,his son ,robert was        
chaplain of the gaol1 and had ,i happily
 been brought over1 the old man would   
have given the credit to his boy4 ,my   
conversion was thus a sort of family    
speculation4  ,those who sent me to     
prison in default of bail1 took care to 
make bail impossible to me by           
intimidating those who would have become
 my sureties1 and after two weeks'      
anxiety ,i was obliged to accept the    
generous offer of two friends in        
,worcester--,james ,barnes and ,john    
,dymond ,stevenson--to come from that   
city and enter into recognizances for   
me1 and ,i was indebted to them for my  
liberation1 after sixteen days'         
imprisonment4  ,so near was my trial    

upon my release that ,i had to return to
 ,gloucester within a fortnight4 ,a     
great desire of my youth had been to see
 ,london4 ,when ,i found myself suddenly
 shut up in gaol1 in prospect of an     
indefinite term of imprisonment1 which  
in my then state of health might prove  
fatal1 my sole remorse was that ,i had  
never seen that city of my dreams4 ,once
 again at liberty ,i made a short visit 
to my family in ,birmingham1 and the    
next week found me in ,london4  ,chafed 
and sad1 with tremulous heart and       
irresolute step1 it seems but yesterday 
that ,i walked through ,woburn ,place   
into the city in which ,i now write4    
,its streets1 its pride1 its            
magnificence enthralled me1 and its very
 poverty fascinated me because nearer to
 my destiny4 ,savage and ,johnson had   
walked those squares houseless1 and why 
not ,i4 ,chatterton had perished in a   
garret1 and garrets had something sacred
 in them4 ,solitary in that two million 
multitude1 ,i was hardly known to any   

one in it1 yet when ,i remembered that  
,i was in ,london ,i felt an enchanted  
gladness1 and in all vicissitudes of    
fortune and chequered struggles with    
fate1 ,i have walked its magical streets
 with undimmed joy1 and it is to me     
still a fairy land1 whose atmosphere of 
enchantment feels as if it would never  
leave me4  ,how sweetly1 how gratefully 
to me 7as words never read before7 came 
the notice the ,weekly ,dispatch gave of
 my first lecture in ,london4 ,all the  
night before ,i had sat up with ,ryall1 
answering correspondence and concerting 
my defence4 ,when ,i reached the        
,rotunda it was more fitting that ,i    
should have found a bed there than a    
rostrum1 for when ,i rose to speak ,i   
was weak as well as timid4 ,to succeed  
in any way in ,london was more than ,i  
ventured to expect1 and the nature of   
the report in the ,weekly ,dispatch     
inspired me with the hope of at least   
being tolerated4  ,i hastened back to   
,gloucester4 ,either a ,secretary of    

,state's order1 or a ,bill had come into
 operation1 ,i was never correctly      
informed which1 removing my trial from  
the ,sessions to the ,assizes1 which    
gave me an impartial ,judge to determine
 my case4 ,at a ,sessions' trial the    
parties who had caused my imprisonment1 
and the magistrates who had shown       
themselves my personal opponents1 would 
have sat on the ,bench to try me4       
,though unable to proceed with my trial 
after having committed me1 they put me  
to the expense of bringing my bail from 
,worcester1 and charged me ,l#a #is4 for
 renewing my sureties4  ,my arrest      
caused a demand for atheistical         
publications in ,cheltenham1 which ,mr4 
,george ,adams1 partly as a friend to   
the free publication of opinion and     
partly from personal friendship to me1  
undertook to supply4 ,in this he was    
joined by his wife1 ,harriet ,adams1 a  
very interesting and courageous woman4  
,on ,monday evening1 ,june #acth1 at a  
public meeting called to consider the   

grounds of my own apprehension1 ,mr4    
,george ,adams was arrested for selling 
,no4 #be of the ,oracle1 and forthwith  
conveyed to the station-house4 ,as soon 
as a knowledge of the arrest came to the
 ears of ,mrs4 ,adams1 she went to the  
station-house to see her husband1 when  
she1 likewise1 was served with a warrant
 for selling ,no4 #d4 ,mrs4 ,adams says1
 7the account cannot be better rendered 
than in her own words7 ',i went to see  
my husband at the station-house1 when ,i
 was detained2 a policeman was sent home
 with me to fetch my infant1 and ,i had 
to leave four at home in bed4 ,the man  
that went with me to the station was a  
rude fellow2 he was quite abusive to me1
 telling me ,i should be locked up from 
my husband2 saying1 it was quite time   
such things were put a stop to4 ,when we
 arrived at the station-house he would  
have locked me in a cell with drunken   
women1 had ,i not sat down in the yard  
and insisted on seeing the              
superintendent1 who then allowed me to  

sit up in a kitchen1 where policemen    
were coming in and out all night4 ,my   
husband was much troubled on my         
account4' ,the four children were left  
locked up in the house alone4  ,mr4     
,bubb's speech1 when ,adams was brought 
up1 is so curious a relic of provincial 
barbarism that ,i preserve it1 or those 
who are told of it in time to come will 
regard the story as some malicious      
fiction4 ,mr4 ,bubb opened the charge by
 justifying himself and clients--',it   
has been said that we are prosecuting   
here for the entertaining of opinions   
merely4 ,that proposition ,i deny4 ,the 
entertaining of opinions is not opposed 
to law if people keep them to1          
themselves4 ,if they step out of the    
way1 and seek to propagate them by      
undermining the institutions of the     
country1 by denying the existence of a  
,god1 by robbing others of the hopes set
 before them1 without offering the      
flimsiest pretext1 it is the duty of all
 to prevent this4 ,such is the opinion  

of those gentlemen who set on foot these
 proceedings1 and no clamour of         
persecution will prevent them from doing
 what they believe to be their duty4    
,and if there are any here present      
disposed to take up this unfortunate    
trade1 ,i would assure them that as long
 as the law punishes1 and the           
magistrates uphold the law1 so long will
 they bring offenders to justice4 ,so   
long as men say there is no ,god1 or    
that the religion of the state is a     
farce and a fallacy1 these gentlemen    
will not be deterred by any clamour4'   
,if this threat were carried out the    
magistrates on every ,bench would have  
constant employment--especially if they 
would undertake1 as ,mr4 ,bubb appeared 
to promise1 to ascertain whether or not 
we had the 'flimsiest pretext' to offer 
in defence of the course we took4       
,adams and his wife were committed to   
take their trials at the ,sessions--in  
the wife's case it was purely vexatious1
 as there was no one bound over to      

prosecute her4 ,yet ,adams1 nearly blind
 from an inflammation of the eyes1 and  
his wife with her child in her arms1    
were kept several days in attendance at 
,gloucester--though the same law which  
prevented the court proceeding in my    
case1 prevented the court from trying   
the ,adamses4 ,in further aggravation of
 loss1 ,l#a #ags4 #f;d4 were demanded   
for discharge of bail and entering new  
sureties--nor was time allowed to fetch 
the bail 7after they were demanded7 from
 ,cheltenham1 the clerk announcing that 
they would be estreated at once4 ,upon  
this ,i directed ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,adams  
to go into court and say they were      
prepared to take their trial then1 and  
there was no occasion to estreat the    
property of their friends4 ,time was    
then allowed4  ,mrs4 ,adams was never   
tried4 ,mr4 ,adams's trial took place at
 ,gloucester assizes1 immediately before
 my own4  ,the passage from ,no4 #be of 
the ,oracle1 for which ,adams was       
indicted1 was written by my friend ,mr4 

,chilton1 who was outraged at my        
imprisonment1 and ran as follows3--     
,what else could be expected of men who 
deify a real or imaginary individual1 a 
compound of ambition and folly1 of mock 
humility and rampant tyranny2 who1      
though called the ',prince of ,peace1'  
declared he came to bring a sword in the
 world8 ,this hellish mission he        
performed to perfection1 for never since
 his time has blood and misery ceased to
 flow from his dogmas and mysteries4    
,as ,i was very anxious to save ,adams  
from consequences which he incurred     
through friendship to me1 ,i advised him
 to let ,mr4 ,thompson defend him4 ,this
 gentleman began by sympathising with   
all the disgust invented by the counsel 
who opened the prosecution1 and he ended
 by expressing ,adams's sorrow and      
contrition for what he had done--a      
contrition which he did not feel1 and   
would rather have undergone much        
imprisonment than have had it said that 
he did4 ,during the whole of the trials 

arising out of the ,oracle1 ,mr4 ,ralph 
,thomas1 barrister1 was the only counsel
 who defended us in court without       
sacrificing us4 ,taking warning by ,mr4 
,thompson's example1 ,i made it a rule  
to advise all our friends to defend     
themselves1 and where unaccustomed to   
public speaking1 to write a brief       
defence in their own language1 and after
 some legal friend had revised it1 to   
read it to the court4 ,we do not want   
lawyers to defend our opinions1 those   
opinions not being their own1 but we    
want them simply to maintain our right  
to publish what are to us important     
convictions4 ,instead of this they      
commonly agree with the crown that we   
are criminal for having a conscience1   
and then1 in our name1 recant with      
'contrition' the opinions which we go   
into court to maintain4  ,adams's       
sentence was delivered in the following 
words by ,mr4 ,justice                  
,erskine3--',george ,adams1 you have    
been convicted of the offence of        

publishing a blasphemous libel1 and the 
libel which was proved to have been     
published by you was one of a most      
horrid and shocking character4 ,whatever
 a man's opinions may be1 he can have no
 right to give vent to them in that     
language4 ,if there was evidence to     
prove that you were the author1 or that 
you were engaged as an active           
disseminator1 ,i should have thought it 
my duty to have inflicted on you a very 
serious imprisonment4 ,although by the  
law of this country every man has a     
right to express his sentiments in      
decent language1 he has no business to  
make use of such shocking language as   
this4 ,but you have expressed1 through  
your counsel1 contrition2 and trusting  
that this is the general feeling of your
 mind1 ,i shall not think it necessary  
to pass on you a severe sentence this   
time4 ,but if you ever offend again1 it 
will then be known that you are         
determined to persevere1 and it will be 
seen whether the law is not strong      

enough to prevent it4 ,the sentence of  
the court is1 that you be imprisoned in 
the ,common ,gaol of this county for one
 calendar month4  ,i was with ,adams    
during the term of his imprisonment1 and
 although his losses and the privations 
of his family were great1 he never      
uttered a murmuring word4 ,from first to
 last he behaved well1 and ,mrs4 ,adams1
 as women usually do1 behaved better4   
,it is worthy of remark that when a     
gentleman deposed that the character of 
,mr4 ,adams 'was a pattern of morality1'
 ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine told the jury   
that 'had ,adams committed a robbery    
such a character might have weight1 but 
in extenuation of religious offence it  
was of no service4'    ,,chapter ,,ii4  
,,the ,,trial  ,the ,assizes opened on  
the #fth of ,august1 #ahdb1 but my case 
did not come on till the #aeth1 ,mr4    
,knight ,hunt 7the author of the        
',fourth ,estate'7 was the gentleman    
engaged to report my trial4 ,as the     
judge was informed that ,i intended to  

defend myself he resolved to take my    
case last4 ,this caused the assizes to  
extend into a second week4 ,saturday    
came before the calendar was exhausted1 
and as there was no knowing whether my  
trial could be gone through in a day1   
the fear of trespassing on ,sunday led  
to the court's being ordered to open on 
,monday1 to the annoyance of javelin men
 kept there unexpectedly1 to jury men   
who had left tills1 ploughs1 and orange 
baskets unprotected--and not least to my
 prosecutors1 who saw with some         
consternation some ,l#bjj added to the  
county expenses1 for in ,cheltenham     
bigotry is greatly preferred when it is 
cheap4  ,if ignorance would look upon   
its own degradation1 let it spend a few 
hours in an assize court4 ,one trial ,i 
witnessed was of two men for an offence 
which indeed arose out of depravity1 but
 the depravity arose out of bad training
 and vicious circumstances4 ,the oldest 
man1 between forty and fifty1 was       
sentenced to transportation for life to 

,norfolk ,island1 the most ferocious    
sentence an ,english judge can          
pronounce4 ,when the man heard it1 he   
bowed in genuine and awkward humbleness1
 and said1 as he made a rustic bow to   
the bench1 ',thank'ee1 my ,lord6' ,such 
abject humiliation of spirit ,i had     
never conceived before4 ,ignorance never
 appeared to me so frightful1 so        
slavish1 so blind1 as on this occasion4 
,unable to distinguish a sentence passed
 upon him from a service done him1 he   
had been taught to bow to his pastors   
and masters1 and he bowed alike when    
cursed as when blessed4 ,the measured   
contempt with which the words were      
spoken by the judge which blasted the   
man's character for ever--the scorn with
 which he was thrust out of the pale of 
society1 never again to know freedom or 
reputation1 made no impression on his   
dark and servile soul4 ,that appalling  
weight of infamy falling on his head and
 on the heads of his children--for which
 he might justly have cursed            

society--only elicited from him a       
',thank'ee1 my ,lord6' ,if ignorance    
would see its own degradation1 would    
feel the incalculable depth of its      
abjectness1 let it sometimes sit for    
instruction in an assize court4  ,the   
preliminary proceedings at the trial ,i 
shall render as ,mr4 ,hunt gave them1 in
 the third person--adding what1 from    
various causes1 was omitted at the time4
  ,on the morning of the trial the      
,court-house at ,gloucester was very    
crowded4 ,many ladies were present from 
all parts of the county3 the wives of   
clergymen1 and some of the nobility1    
were among them1 attracted by curiosity1
 and by the opportunity which might     
never occur to them again of hearing1   
without loss of caste1 a little heresy  
defended in person4 ,the audience       
continued undiminished till ten o'clock 
at night4  ,as the name of ,george      
,jacob ,holyoake was called1 he advanced
 and entered the dock4 ,mr4 ,ogden1 the 
turnkey in charge of prisoners1 directed

 him with the usual air of official     
impatience to take his place at the bar4
  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,do not be in a hurry4
 ,first hand me my books4  ,mr4 ,ogden4 
7,looking indignantly at a large corded 
box lying outside the dock47 ,you can't 
have that box here4 ,you must go to the 
bar and plead4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4         
,nonsense4 ,hand me the box4  ,it being 
reluctantly handed up1 ,mr4 ,holyoake   
applied to the judge1 ,mr4 ,justice     
,erskine1 for the use of a table4  ,mr4 
,justice ,erskine4 ,there is one4 7,he  
referred to some boarding behind the    
bar71 and there ,mr4 ,holyoake proceeded
 to arrange his books and               
papers--although the situation was not  
advantageous1 it being lower than the   
bar where the prisoners usually stand4  
,mr4 ,holyoake employed twenty minutes  
in this operation1 and when he had done1
 the dock resembled1 a young            
bookseller's stall4 ,mr4 ,holyoake then 
advanced to the bar and bowed to the    
court4  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine 7who had 

waited with great patience74 ,are you   
ready8  ,mr4 ,holyoake replied          
affirmatively1 and the clerk proceeded  
to read the indictment as follows3--    
,gloucester to wit4--,the ,jurors for   
our lady the ,queen1 upon their oath1   
present that ,george ,jacob ,holyoake1  
late of the parish of ,cheltenham1 in   
the county of ,gloucester1 labourer199  
being a wicked1 malicious1 and          
evil-disposed person1 and disregarding  
the laws and religion of the realm1 and 
wickedly and profanely devising and     
intending to bring ,almighty ,god1 the  
,holy ,scriptures1 and the ,christian   
religion1 into disbelief and contempt   
among the people of this kingdom1 on the
 twenty-fourth day of ,may1 in the fifth
 year of the reign of our lady the      
,queen1 with force and arms1 at the     
parish aforesaid1 in the county         
aforesaid1 in the presence and hearing  
of divers liege subjects of our said    
lady the ,queen1 maliciously1           
unlawfully1 and wickedly did compose1   

speak1 utter1 pronounce1 and publish    
with a loud voice1 of and concerning    
,almighty ,gog1 the ,holy ,scriptures1  
and the ,christian religion1 these words
 following1 that is to say1 ',i 7meaning
 the said ,george ,jacob ,holyoake7 do  
not believe there is such a thing as a  
,god2 ,i 7meaning the said ,george      
,jacob ,holyoake7 would have the ,deity 
served as they 7meaning the government  
of this kingdom7 serve the subaltern1   
place him 7meaning ,almighty ,god7 on   
half-pay'--to the high displeasure of   
,almighty ,god1 to the great scandal and
 reproach of the ,christian religion1 in
 open violation of the laws of this     
kingdom1 to the evil example of all     
others in the like case offending1 and  
against the peace of our lady the       
,queen1 her crown and dignity4       99 
,it was pure invention that described me
 as a' labourer4'      ,it was a term of
 degradation in the county1 and         
therefore      employed--my profession  
was that of a ,mathematical ,teacher4   

,mr4 ,holyoake pleaded ,not ,guilty1 and
 applied to have the names of the jury  
called over singly and distinctly4  ,mr4
 ,alexander1 counsel for the            
prosecution1 said the offence being only
 a misdemeanour1 the defendant had no   
right to challenge4  ,mr4 ,justice      
,erskine4 ,of course not1 unless reasons
 are given in each case4  ,clerk4 ,the  
name of ,john ,lovesey is first4  ,mr4  
,holyoake4 ,i object to ,lovesey4 ,he   
sat on the bench when ,i was before the 
magistrates at ,cheltenham1 and approved
 the proceedings against me4 ,he is not 
disinterested in this matter4  ,mr4     
,justice ,erskine said that was not     
sufficient reason for challenging4      
,loresey declared he 'shuddered at the  
crime of the prisoner1' and after some  
further conversation1 the judge having  
observed it was 'as well to go1'        
,lovesey left the box4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 
,in the case of ,mr4 ,southwell he was  
allowed to challenge4  ,mr4 ,justice    
,erskine4 ,i am not bound by the        

,recorder of ,bristol4  ,the names of   
the other jurors having been called     
over1 ,mr4 ,holyoake objected to one on 
the ground of his being a farmer1 and   
from his profession not likely to be    
acquainted with the nature of the       
question at issue499  ,mr4 ,justice     
,erskine said he could not sit there to 
listen to such objections4 ,mr4         
,holyoake saying he had no objection to 
urge which his lordship would allow1    
'seven farmers1 one grocer1 one         
poulterer1 one miller1 one nondescript  
shopkeeper1 and one maltster1 were then 
impaneled to ascertain whether one      
,george ,jacob ,holyoake had had a fight
 with ,omnipotence1 whether he had done 
his utmost to bring the ,deity into     
contempt1 whether he had fought         
,omnipotence with force of arms1 and had
 spoken against it or him with a loud   
voice4'9999       99 ,a poulterer is    
called upon1 under oath1 to decide this 
great theological and philosophical     
question that has      agitated the     

world for so many hundred               
centuries4444444,to      make a         
poulterer a sovereign judge of theology 
is on a par      with making the        
,archbishop of ,canterbury a judge of   
poultry4--,weekly ,dispatch1 ,august    
#ah4 #ahdb4 ,it has been      objected  
to this that very likely his ,grace of  
,canterbury is      a very good judge of
 poultry4       9999 ',publicola's'     
second letter to ,judge                 
,erskine4--,weekly      ,dispatch1 ,sep 
#ah1 #ahdb  ,the following is the list  
of the jury3--  ,thomas ,gardiner1      
grocer1 ,cheltenham1 ,foreman4  ,james  
,reeve1 farmer1 ,chedworth4  ,william   
,ellis1 farmer1 ,chedworth4  ,avery     
,trotman1 farmer1 ,chedworth4  ,william 
,mathews1 poulterer1 ,cheltenham4'      
,simon ,vizard1 shopkeeper1 ,oldland4   
,isaac ,tombs1 farmer1 ,whitcomb4       
,william ,wilson1 maltster1             
,brimpsfield4 ,edwin ,brown1 farmer1    
,withington4 ,bevan ,smith1 farmer1     
,harescomb4 ,william ,smith1 miller1    

,rarnwood4 ,joseph ,shipp1 farmer1      
,yate4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,can ,i have a  
copy of the indictment8  ,mr4 ,justice  
,erskine4 ,i had one made for you in    
consequence of your application to the  
court last week4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,yes1 
my lord1 but after ,i had thanked you   
for your courtesy in so doing1 ,i was   
asked #hs4 #f;d4 for it by 7not being   
able to call him by his name1 ,mr4      
,holyoake said7 that sour looking       
gentleman there1 7pointing to the clerk 
of the court1 an individual as dusty and
 as forbidding as an old penal statute1 
and who always spoke to ,mr4 ,holyoake  
like one4 ,the court laughed1 the judge 
frowned1 the clerk looked indignant1 but
 before censure could fall1 ,mr4        
,holyoake escaped into the next         
sentence1 adding71 after the numerous   
exactions ,i was subjected to at the    
sessions1 after being brought here by   
the magistrates and then not tried1 ,i  
did not think myself justified in paying
 any more1 and the clerk refused it me4 

,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,i ordered a    
copy to be made for you1 but did not    
think it necessary that you should have 
it on any other than the usual          
conditions499  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,can ,i  
be allowed to read the indictment       
against me8  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4    
,certainly4  ,the clerk then handed a   
copy to ,mr4 ,holyoake1 who on observing
 the counsel for the prosecution rise1  
left the bar and placed himself where he
 could face ,mr4 ,alexander1 with a view
 to take notes4 ,the judge very         
courteously asked if ,mr4 ,holyoake     
desired note-paper and pens1 which he   
accepted1 and3  ,mr4 ,alexander         
said--,gentlemen of the jury3 ,the      
defendant at the bar is indicted1 not   
for writing1 but for speaking and       
uttering certain wicked and blasphemous 
words4 ,this person is not1 as in the   
case previously brought before your     
attention19999 the vendor1 but he is the
 author of the blasphemy4 ,from the     
coincidence of words1 he is the         

editor-,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,you must
 not proceed in that way4 ,you must not 
assume--       99 ,this copy of         
,indictment occupied not quite one sheet
 of      paper1 for which eight         
shillings and sixpence were asked6      
9999,that of ,george ,adams4  ,mr4      
,alexander4 ,i am aware1 my lord1 that  
,i may not assert the identity of the   
defendant with the work alluded to--,i  
was only going to draw the attention of 
the gentlemen of the jury to the        
coincidence of the words4 ,but ,i will  
proceed with my case4 ,the defendant1 on
 the #bdth of ,may last1 issued placards
 for a lecture to be delivered in       
,cheltenham4 ,in these placards he      
announced1 not the diabolical1 the      
dreadful topics which he descanted upon1
 not anything which would lead the      
reader to imagine or expect what really 
took place--but he gave out his subject 
as a lecture upon ,home ,colonisation1  
,emigration1 and the ,poor ,laws4 ,mark 
this1 gentlemen of the jury4 ,had he    

given in his announcements any hint of  
what was to take place1 his end might   
have been defeated1 and no audience     
attracted to listen to the blasphemous  
expressions you have heard set out in   
the indictment4 ,but he did obtain an   
audience1 a numerous audience1 and then 
declared that the people were too poor  
to have a religion--that he himself had 
no religion--that he did not believe in 
such a thing as a ,god2 and--though it  
pains me to repeat the horrible         
blasphemy--that he would place the      
,deity upon half-pay4 ,i shall call     
witnesses to prove all this1 and then it
 will be for you to say if he is guilty4
 ,it may be urged to you that these     
things were said in answer to a         
question1 that the inuendoes must be    
made out4 ,inuendoes6 ,i should think it
 an insult to the understandings of     
twelve jurymen--of twelve intelligent   
men--to call witnesses to prove         
inuendoes3 but ,i shall place the case  
before you1 and leave it in your hands4 

,i am sure ,i need not speak1 ,i need   
not dilate upon the consequence of      
insulting that ,deity we are as much    
bound1 as inclined1 to reverence4 ,he   
then called ,james ,bartram--who said3  
,i am a printer at ,cheltenham1 employed
 upon the ,cheltenham ,chronicle2       
attended the lecture of defendant1 just 
after nine o'clock2 there were about one
 hundred persons present of both sexes2 
the placard announced ',home            
,colonisation1 ,emigration1 ,poor ,laws 
,superseded2' heard a man put a question
 to ,mr4 ,holyoake2 he said1' ,the      
lecturer has been speaking of our duty  
to man1 but he has said nothing as      
regards our duty towards ,god4'         
,prisoner replied1 ',i am of no religion
 at all--,i do not believe in such a    
thing as a ,god4 ,the people of this    
country are too poor to have any        
religion4 ,i would serve the ,deity as  
the government does the subaltern--place
 him on half-pay4' ,he was the length of
 the room off2 ,i heard him distinctly2 

he spoke in a distinct voice4           
,cross-examined by ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,you 
say ,i said the people were too poor to 
have any religion2 will you state the   
reasons ,i gave8 ,witness4 ,i can give  
the substance1 if not the words2 'you   
said1 ',the great expense of religion to
 the country4'  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,i will 
thank you to state the other reasons8   
,witness4 ,i don't recollect any other  
reason99  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,now1 you have
 sworn the words are blasphemous--  ,mr4
 ,justice ,erskine4 ,no1 he has not4    
,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,will you state if the  
words are blasphemous8  ,mr4 ,justice   
,erskine said such a question could only
 be put through him4 ,he then put the   
question--do you consider the words     
blasphemous8  ,witness4 ,i do4  ,mr4    
,holyoake4 ,why do you think them       
blasphemous8  ,witness4 ,because they   
revile the majesty of heaven1 and are   
calculated to subvert peace1 law1 and   
order2 and are punishable by human law1 
because they attack human authority4    

,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,who has instructed you 
to define blasphemy thus8  ,witness4 ,i 
have not been instructed1 it is my own  
opinion4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,at           
,cheltenham1 during my examination      
before the magistrates1 you did not     
appear to have these notions4 ,will you 
swear you have not concocted that answer
 for this occasion8  ,witness4 ,i did   
not expect such a question would be put2
 ,i did not expect to be catechised4    
,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,who advised you to     
attend as a witness8 ,witness4 ,the     
magistrates sent for me4  ,mr4          
,holyoake4 ,did you not know before the 
day of my commitment something of this  
matter8  ,witness4 ,there was some      
'chaff' in the office about it2 that's  
all ,i heard of it2 a policeman was sent
 from the magistrates for me to give the
 names of witnesses who were to appear4 
,don't know why the policeman came to   
me2 don't know his name2 no clergyman   
has spoken to me1 that ,i recollect1    
upon the subject of this prosecution2   

not sure of it2 several persons have    
spoken to me1 cannot say they were      
clergymen2 ,i do not know the parties   
who got up the prosecution1 or sent the 
policeman to me2 the report was         
furnished to the paper ,i work on by    
another person2 ,i saw the reporter's   
notes1 but not the editor's observations
 till the galleys were pulled4 ,mr4     
,justice ,erskine4 ,what do you mean by 
galleys pulled8 ,witness4 ,brass slides1
 my lord4  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,you 
mean1 ,i suppose1 till all the types    
were up8  ,witness4 ,yes1 my lord4      
,cross-examination resumed4 ,do not know
 of my own knowledge who made the       
report2 have been ten years in          
employment at ,chronicle office2 know it
 was said in that paper that three      
witnesses from that office could prove  
what had occurred at the lecture2 the   
name of reporter of our paper is ,edward
 ,wills2 ,i heard your lecture1 you said
 nothing against morality4 ,mr4         
,holyoake4 ,will you state your opinion 

of morality8 ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4    
,the question is irrelevant4 ,mr4       
,holyoake4 ,did you think ,i spoke my   
honest convictions8 ,witness4 ,i thought
 you spoke what you meant2 you spoke    
straightforwardly4  ,the judge here     
interposed1 to stop ,mr4 ,holyoake from 
asking as to witness's opinions4        
,cross-examination resumed--,witness4 ,i
 should not have lost my situation if ,i
 had not come forward in this case2 in  
my opinion you spoke wickedly1 as stated
 in indictment2 ,i did not notice that  
you spoke contemptuously when using the 
word thing1 but you used the word2 there
 were other words between those used in 
indictment2 they did not1 is in that    
document1 follow one another2 ,i do not 
remember the words2 you spoke of the    
enormous sums of money spent upon       
religion1 and the poverty of the people1
 and afterwards1 and in connection with 
that1 said you would place ,deity as    
government did the subalterns--on       
half-pay2 ,i have been a preacher4      

,re-examined by ,mr4 ,alexander4 ,i have
 been uninterruptedly ten years in the  
same employment2 do not give evidence   
from fear or reward2 but from a sense of
 duty4  ,mr4 ,alexander4 ,that is the   
case for the prosecution1 my lord4  ,mr4
 ,justice ,erskine4 ,now is the time for
 your defence4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,i am   
not a little surprised to hear that the 
case for the prosecution is closed4 ,i  
have heard nothing1 not one word1 to    
prove the charge in the indictment4     
,there has been adduced no evidence to  
show that ,i have uttered words         
maliciously and wickedly blasphemous4 ,i
 submit to your lordship that there is  
not sufficient evidence before the      
,court4  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,that  
is for the jury to decide4  ,mr4        
,holyoake4 ,i thought1 my lord1 as the  
evidence is so manifestly insufficient  
to prove malice1 you would have felt    
bound to direct my acquittal4  ,mr4     
,justice ,erskine4 ,it is for the jury  
to say whether they are satisfied4  ,mr4

 ,holyoake4 ,then1 ,gentlemen of the    
,jury1 it now becomes my duty to address
 you on the nature of the charge        
preferred against me1 and of the        
evidence by which it is attempted to be 
supported4 ,when ,i stood in this court 
a week ago1 and saw the grand jury with 
,mr4 ,grantley ,berkeley at their head  
as foreman--when ,i heard his lordship1 
surrounded by learned counsel1 deliver  
his charge in the midst of persons      
distinguished for learning1 for         
eloquence1 for experience1 and for      
literary attainments--  ,i then thought1
 as ,i now do1 that this court could    
find nobler means than the employment of
 brute force to counteract anything ,i  
could attempt--which ,i never have      
done--to bring the truly sacred into    
contempt4 ,i thought ,i never should be 
called upon to stand in this dock1 with 
all its polluting and disgusting        
associations1 to answer for mere matters
 of speculative opinion4 ,i did think   
that such persons possessed a sense of  

the powers of the human mind that would 
have prevented the interposition of     
penal judges upon such subjects4  ,but  
to ,mr4 ,grantley ,berkeley1 as foreman 
of the grand jury who found a true bill 
against me1 ,i beg to draw your         
attention4 ,mr4 ,grantley ,berkeley1 as 
you are aware1 is brother to the member1
 ,mr4 ,c4 ,berkeley1 who attempted to   
vindicate the conduct of the ,cheltenham
 magistrates from the allegations       
against them by ,sir ,james ,graham in  
the ,house of ,commons4 ,in the recent  
case of ,mr4 ,mason1 who was taken from 
a meeting1 as ,i was at ,cheltenham1 by 
a policeman1 illegally1 without a       
warrant1 the doctrine was laid down by a
 cabinet minister1 in the ,house of     
,commons1 that if the person so arrested
 was subsequently found guilty by a     
jury1 the illegal apprehension was      
justified4 ,see how this applies to my  
case4 ,i was taken from a public meeting
 a week after the objectionable words   
were spoken2 was taken by a policeman at

 near midnight2 without a warrant4 ,this
 was justly deemed illegal4 ,i sat in   
the gallery of the ,house of ,commons   
when the ,hon4 ,member for ,bath brought
 forward my case1 and when ,sir ,james  
,graham1 in reference to the            
correspondence which had taken place    
with the magistrates1 had the frankness 
to say1 'there had been serious         
irregularities and unnecessary harshness
 used in the case of ,holyoake4' ,in    
this country four thousand applications 
are annually made to the ,secretary of  
,state for the ,home ,department1 and   
out of that four thousand my case is    
spoken of as one in which serious       
irregularities had occurred1 and        
unnecessary harshness been employed4    
,and that amid the numerous affairs of  
this great empire it should have        
received this distinct notice is        
presumptive evidence that it contained  
much that should be corrected4 ,on      
,thursday1 ,july #ba1 the ,hon4 ,mr4 ,c4
 ,berkeley1 addressing the ,speaker of  

the ,house of ,commons1 said1 ',i wish  
to ask the ,right ,hon4 ,baronet the    
,secretary for the ,home ,department a  
question1 but in order to make it       
intelligible to the ,house1 it will be  
necessary for me to refer to what took  
place on ,tuesday last4 ,it appears that
 upon that day the ,hon4 member for     
,bath stated1 that as a person named    
,holyoake had been committed to prison1 
at ,cheltenham1 in an improper manner1  
he wished to know whether the ,right    
,hon4 the ,secretary for the ,home      
,department had any objection to produce
 the correspondence which had taken     
place upon that subject--to which the   
,right ,hon4 ,baronet replied that1 he  
felt called on in the discharge of his  
duty to inquire into the circumstances  
of the commitment in question--he found 
that serious irregularities had been    
committed1 and he expressed his opinion 
to that effect--but as legal proceedings
 were likely to result out of what had  
occurred1 he did not think it would be  

judicious in the ,hon4 and learned      
,gentleman to press for the production  
of the correspondence4444  444,the      
,right ,hon4 ,baronet knows1 or at least
 ought to know1 that no such imputation 
could with propriety be cast upon the   
magistrates1 for by the #crd section of 
the #bnd and #crd of ,victoria1 commonly
 called the ,county ,constabulary ,act1 
no magistrate or magistrates1 in petty  
sessions assembled1 can interfere with  
or control the chief constable1 or any  
sub-constable1 in the discharge of their
 duties1 as the rules and regulations   
for these all emanate from the office of
 the ,right ,hon4 ,baronet4 ,it         
therefore was exceedingly unfair that   
these imputations should go forth1 and  
,i have therefore now to ask1 on behalf 
of the magistrates1 whether the ,right  
,hon4 ,baronet objects to the           
correspondence being printed and        
circulated with the votes of the house1 
and in case he should object ,i shall   
offer it for the perusal of the ,hon4   

,member for ,bath4' ,sir ,james ,graham1
 in reply1 said1 ',i had no intention   
whatever to cast any imputation on the  
gentlemen1 who that day formed the      
,petty ,sessions4 ,my observation more  
properly applied to the capture of      
,holyoake1 and the unnecessary harshness
 used in his conveyance from the        
magistrates' office4 ,at the same time  
,i shall object to the printing of the  
correspondence with the votes1 as no    
good result would come from it4 ,of     
course the hon4 member is at liberty to 
offer it to the ,hon4 ,member for ,bath 
if he chooses--but ,i repeat1 that as   
legal proceedings were pending1 ,i think
 such course not advisable4'  ,this is a
 most flagrant attempt at justification4
 ,the ,act the hon4 member quoted       
related to ,petty ,session magistrates1 
before whom he knew my case had never   
come1 and of whom1 therefore1 no        
complaint could have been made4 ,but    
,mr4 ,berkeley had a friendly purpose to
 serve4 ,the magistrates and their      

friends have the strongest motives for  
finding a true bill against me--and they
 have motives equally powerful for      
desiring that your verdict should be    
'guilty1' inasmuch as that verdict will 
justify all these 'irregularities'--all 
the 'unnecessary harshness'--will remove
 from their shoulders all the           
responsibility which they incurred by   
the course they have pursued towards me4
 ,bear in mind1 gentlemen of the jury1  
if the rights are to be enjoyed about   
which we so much glorify ourselves1     
cases of this kind must not be allowed  
to pass unnoticed4 ',serious            
irregularities' demand serious notice4  
,arbitrary infraction of the liberty of 
the subject must not receive the        
sanction of a jury4 ,recollect that the 
same course may be pursued towards any  
one of you1 and that if it receives your
 sanction it will be made a precedent of
 law--and pernicious may be its         
influence4  ,but ,i would draw your     
attention to a printed report of        

remarks1 made by his lordship1 in his   
charge to the grand jury upon my case1  
,i do not for a moment believe that his 
lordship had other than fair intentions1
 but1 unfortunately1 his remarks will   
have a contrary effect on those who have
 to judge my case4 ,i have in my hand   
the ,cheltenham ,chronicle1 of          
,wednesday last1 ,august #ajth1 from    
which ,i will read4 ',these offences1'  
he said1 referring to the cases of      
blasphemy1 'lay at the root of all the  
crime which prevailed1 and a            
consideration of the causes out of which
 they sprung pointed to the only        
efficient remedy for their removal4 ,in 
the case of ,holyoake1 his lordship     
observed that a work called the ,oracle 
of ,reason had been printed and         
circulated containing language which he 
did not think it right to repeat2       
language in which the writer traced all 
the evil which existed in the world1 not
 to the real cause--the evil passions of
 the human heart--but to the existence  

of ,christianity itself4 ,this was      
followed by the most opprobrious        
language'--  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine     
7interrupting74 ,i never said anything  
of that kind--that printed report is    
entirely incorrect4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,i 
will read some notes of your lordship's 
charge1 taken at the time of its        
delivery by a reporter4 ,but whether the
 report in the ,chronicle is correct or 
incorrect1 it has had its influence in  
leading the public1 and probably this   
jury1 to a prejudgment of my case4      
',there are other charges which seem at 
once to lead the mind to the            
consideration of the root of all the    
evil which forms the subject of our     
present consideration4 ,i allude to two 
charges of blasphemy4 ,in one the       
accused is said to have sold and        
published a paper called the ,oracle of 
,reason containing language which ,i    
shall not think it right to read1 in    
which the writer traces the evils at    
present existing1 not to the evil       

passions of man1 but to the existence of
 ,christianity1 and follows it up with  
the most opprobrious language to the    
,saviour and his system1 charging him   
with being the occasion of all the crime
 and misery which prevail4 ,the second  
charge is against a man who gave a      
lecture1 in the course of which he      
discussed the proper way of teaching man
 his duty to his neighbour4 ,a person   
suggested that he had said nothing about
 teaching man his duty to his ,god4     
,that led to a statement which shows the
 folly of the person2 and he followed it
 up by making use of such language that1
 if you believe it was intended to have 
destroyed the reverence for ,god1 he has
 subjected himself to punishment4 ,there
 is another thing--he does not appear to
 have intended to discuss this2 but if  
you are convinced that1 by what he has  
said1 he intended to bring religion into
 contempt1 he is guilty of blasphemy4   
,if such addresses had been directed to 
the educated classes1 it might have been

 thought they would remedy themselves2  
but when they are delivered among       
persons not educated1 the greatest      
danger might be expected4 ,it is not by 
the punishment of those who attempt to  
mislead the ignorant that we can hope to
 cure the evil4 ,if we feel that it is  
from the ignorance of those persons to  
whom the addresses are delivered that   
the danger is to be apprehended1 it     
becomes our imperative duty to teach    
those persons4 ,some persons have said1 
,instruct the poor in reading and       
writing1 but leave them to learn        
religion at home4 ,but what would you   
say to a man who would manure his land1 
and leave it to find seed for itself8   
,it would produce nothing but weeds4 ,i 
know there is great difficulty in       
arranging any national schools2 but1 as 
we are all individually sufferers1 ,i   
hope we shall join in extending a       
national religious education1 so that   
all may learn to do right1 not from a   
fear of punishment1 but from a far      

nobler motive--the knowledge that       
offences against the laws are contrary  
to the precepts of the word of ,god1 and
 hostile to the best interests of       
society4'  ,i fear his lordship may not 
give me credit for sincerity2 but ,i do 
assure you1 gentlemen of the jury1 no   
one heard some of those sentiments with 
more pleasure than ,i did4 ,i did not   
expect so much liberality4 ,if such     
advice had been followed1 ,i should not 
now be standing here to defend points of
 a speculative nature4 ,such errors     
should be corrected by argument1 in the 
arena of public opinion4 ,where ,i      
uttered these words1 they should have   
been refuted4 ,the witness against me   
says he is a preacher2 had he no word in
 answer8 could he say no word for his   
,god8 ,no2 he1 and those who employ and 
abet him1 shrink from the attempt1 and  
seek to punish in this dock opinions    
they cannot refute4 ,is this a course   
becoming those who say they have truth  
on their side8  ,his lordship said      

'emissaries are going about4' ,i am no  
emissary1 and the term as applied to me 
is unjust4 ,i might1 even by the        
admission of ,mr4 ,bubb1 'undermine'    
men's religion1 go about secretly       
disseminating my opinions1 without      
danger of standing here4 ,but ,i spoke  
openly2 and you who usually have to     
punish dishonesty1 are now called upon  
to punish its non-committal1 for a      
little lying would have saved me from   
this charge4 ,i have infringed no law1  
injured no man's reputation1 taken no   
man's property1 attacked no man's       
person1 broken no promise1 violated no  
oath1 encouraged no evil1 taught no     
immorality--set only an example of free 
speaking4 ,i was asked a question1 and  
answered it openly4 ,i am not even      
charged with declaring dogmatically1    
',there is no ,god4' ,i only expressed  
an opinion4 ,i should hold myself       
degraded could ,i descend to inquire1   
before uttering my convictions1 if they 
met the approval of every anonymous man 

in the audience4 ,i never forget that   
other men's opinions may be             
correct--that others may be right as    
well as myself1 ,i have put forth my own
 opinions openly1 from a conviction of  
their truth2 and the sentiments ,i      
cannot defend ,i should scorn like my   
prosecutors to invoke an                
attorney-general to protect4 ,i seek a  
public place1 where any man may refute  
me if he can1 and convict me as wilful  
or ignorant4 ,i should think myself     
degraded if ,i published secretly4 ,what
 can we think of the morality of a law  
which requires secret inquiry1 which    
prohibits the free publication of       
opinion8  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,you  
must have heard me state the law1 that  
if it be done seriously and decently all
 men are at liberty to state opinions4  
,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,whatever the law says1 
if an informer can carry the words to   
persons interested in their             
suppression--if policemen can be sent to
 apprehend1 without warrants1 the man   

who publicly expresses his opinions--if 
he can be handcuffed like a felon1 and  
thrust into a gaol--if indictments can  
be brought against him1 and he be put to
 ruinous expenses and harassing         
anxieties1 however honest the expression
 of opinion may be--then1 ,i say1 this  
'liberty-law' is a mockery4 ,but by the 
word 'decent' is meant 'what those in   
authority think proper4' ,there should  
be no censorship of opinions2 but ,i am 
told that because ,i spoke to ignorant  
people1 ,i am criminal4 ,to educated    
persons1 then1 ,i might have said what  
,i did with impunity--  ,mr4 ,justice   
,erskine4 ,i only1 after speaking of    
education1 said that an honest man1     
speaking his opinions decently1 was     
entitled to do so4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4     
,there is no evidence to show that my   
audience were unable to distinguish     
decency and propriety4 ,but it must be  
already clear enough to you1 gentlemen  
of the jury1 who have been employed     
during the past week determining        

violations of the law1 that ,i am placed
 here for having been more honest than  
the law happens to allow4 ,i am         
unaccustomed to address a jury1 and ,i  
hope to avoid the charge of presumption 
or dogmatism4 ,i have no wish to offend 
the prejudices of any man in this court1
 and have no interest in so doing1 when 
his lordship is armed with the power of 
the law to punish it4 ,but1 while ,i    
profess respect for your opinions1 ,i   
must entertain some for my own4 ,there  
are those here who think religion       
proper1 and that it alone can lead to   
general happiness--,i do not1 and ,i    
have had the same means of judging4 ,you
 say your feelings are insulted--your   
opinions outraged2 but what of mine8    
,mine1 however honest1 are rendered     
liable to punishment4 ,i ask not        
equality of privileges in this respect2 
,i seek not the power of punishing those
 who differ from me--nay1 ,i should     
disdain its use4 ,christianity claims   
what she does not allow1 although she   

says ',all men are brothers4'  ,it is   
from no disrespect to the bar that ,i   
did not give my case into the hands of  
counsel1 but because they are unable to 
enter into my motives4 ,there is a magic
 circle out of which they will not step2
 they will argue only what is orthodox2 
and you would have had no opportunity   
from them of learning my true motives1  
or seeing the real bearings of this     
case499       99 ,from what subsequently
 appeared in the ,cheltenham ,free      
,press1 ,i learned that some of the bar 
took offence at these      remarks2 and 
one revenged himself by describing me1  
in the      ,morning ,chronicle1 as 'a  
wretched-looking creature1      scarcely
 emerging from boyhood1 whose wiry and  
dishevelled      hair1 lip unconscious  
of the razor's edge1 and dingy          
looks1 gave him the appearance of  ,the 
author of the paragraph which led to    
this day's proceedings applied to me the
 epithets of 'wretch1' 'miscreant1'     
'monster'--represented me as one who    

discoursed 'devilism4' ,the ,gloucester 
,chronicle laboured to prove that ,i was
 a malicious blasphemer1 a low ,german  
student1 is evidently1 from his         
pronunciation and language1 a most      
ignorant and illiterate character1 and  
no doubt courted the present prosecution
 tor the sake of notoriety4'  ,the      
,cheltenham ,examiner--the editor of    
which1 ,i understand1 is ,mr4 ,jelinger 
,symons--draws a parallel between me and
 the reputed regicide1 who has recently 
shot at the ,queen4 ,these are the      
words3--',akin to the offence for which 
,holyoake has been committed is the     
crime for which ,francis1 also a mere   
stripling1 is likely to forfeit his     
personal liberty1 if not his life4 ,the 
crimes of blasphemy and treason have    
many points of great similarity1 and    
frequently result from the same causes2 
and it would not be an uninstructive    
task to trace out the progress of those 
causes which lead the minds of the      
unguarded to the extreme points when    

they become dangerous to society4       
,holyoake1 the bold assertor of the     
non-existence of a ,god1 did not become 
an infidel at once2 and ,francis1 the   
would-be regicide1 did not level his    
pistol at oar beloved sovereign without 
his mind having been acted and prepared 
by previous circumstances4444 ,in both  
cases a morbid imagination1 an          
affectation of superiority1 a contempt  
for and a dissatisfaction with existing 
institutions1 and a craving after       
notoriety1 are the primary incentives to
 action1' ,this ungenerous and offensive
 parallel was drawn out through a long  
leading article4 ,the effect1 if not the
 object1 of all this is to prejudge my  
case1 to awaken all the bitter          
prejudices which lurk around religion1  
and to secure my condemnation before my 
trial4  ,another paper199 in which      
justice was done me in some respects1   
called me a 'bigot4' ,i am not a bigot4 
,i do not assume that ,i alone am right2
 nor did ,i speak of ,deity1 declaring  

dogmatically his non-existence4 ,i spoke
 only of my own disbelief in such an    
existence4 ,of all isms ,i think        
dogmatism the worst4 ,i do not judge    
other men by the agreement of their     
opinions with my own4 ,i believe you    
consider ,christianity a benefit4 ,i    
regret that ,i feel it is not so1 and ,i
 claim the privilege of saving what is  
true to me4 ,i have ever been ready to  
acquire correct notions4 ,i have        
publicly called upon parties whose duty 
it was to teach me--and who were well   
paid for teaching--to assist me in      
sifting out the truth4 ,but they have   
chosen the strong arm of the law rather 
than strong argument4 ,jean ,jacques    
,rousseau says in his ',confessions1'   
',enthusiasm for sublime virtue is of   
little use in society4 ,in aiming too   
high we are subject to fall2 the        
continuity of little duties1 well       
fulfilled1 demands no less strength than
 heroic actions1 and we find our account
 in it much better1 both in respect to  

reputation and happiness4 ,the constant 
esteem of mankind is infinitely better  
than sometimes their admiration4' ,as   
the world goes there is much good sense 
in this1 and ,i have read it to show how
 fully ,i accord with these sentiments4 
,i am not aiming at sublime virtue1 but 
rather at the continuity of little      
duties well fulfilled4 ,it is enough for
 ,me if ,i can be true and useful4      
99 ,the ,national ,association ,gazette4
  ,i was greatly surprised to find the  
learned gentleman engaged as prosecuting
 counsel had so-little to say in        
reference to the case entrusted to his  
charge1 but ,i presume it must be       
attributed to the fact that little could
 be said upon the subject4 ,all his     
ingenuity1 all his legal skill could not
 discover an argument at all tenable    
against me4 ,i certainly expected to    
hear him attempt to prove to you that   
these prosecutions were either useful or
 necessary1 but he could only tell you  
that my sentiments were very horrible1  

without adducing proof that his         
assertions were true4 ,he dealt         
liberally in inuendoes1 particularly in 
reference to the placards exhibited     
previous to the lecture1 and the motive 
for issuing them4 ,but you have been    
able to glean from his own witness the  
truth of the matter4 ,i had completed my
 discourse1 which was of a secular      
character1 and was preparing to return  
home1 when one ,maitland questioned me  
on the subject of my opinions4 ,i did   
not get up a meeting under one pretence 
to use it for another4 ,i employed no   
scheme to allure an audience to listen  
to what ,i did not openly avow1 although
 it has been unfairly insinuated that ,i
 did so4  ,when ,i was first apprehended
 my papers were taken from me4 ,they    
would not even leave me the papers      
necessary for my defence1 and ,i do not 
know what use was made of them1 or that 
this day the information thus unfairly  
obtained may not be employed against me4
 ,i will read the memorial on this      

subject1 which ,i forwarded to the      
,secretary of ,state4  ',memorial of the
 undersigned ,george ,jacob ,holyoake1  
prisoner in ,gloucester ,county ,gaol1  
on the charge of ,blasphemy1 to ,sir    
,james ,graham1 ,her ,majesty's         
,secretary of ,state1  ',shewith1--,that
 your memorialist was committed to this 
gaol from ,cheltenham1 on the vague     
charge of blasphemy1 on ,june #crd4     
',that in consequence of representations
 made to him by the police authorities  
in ,cheltenham1 your memorialist brought
 with him to the gaol some private      
papers1 hastily selected1 for his       
defence--and that1 on arriving here1 the
 said papers were seized1 and the       
visiting magistrate refused to allow    
your memorialist the use of them1 or to 
give them up to his friends to be used  
for his advantage4  ',that1 as these    
papers were brought in confidence that  
your memorialist would have been allowed
 to consult his own thoughts in his own 
defence--and as they are no man's       

property but his own--and1 also1 as     
without them your memorialist will not  
have a fair chance of defence1--he      
trusts you will order them to be        
restored to him without delay4  ',the   
offence with which your memorialist     
stands charged occurred as he was       
journeying homeward1 in a town where he 
was a comparative stranger4             
,consequently1 and owing to great       
bigotry on religious subjects1 your     
memorialist has been unable to obtain   
bail1 and has suffered fourteen days'   
imprisonment1 which time he has spent in
 fruitless applications to the          
authorities here for proper books and   
papers to prepare his defence4 ,out of a
 list of thirty-one books submitted for 
that purpose only thirteen are allowed4 
',that1 as the trial of your memorialist
 is to take place at the next sessions  
of this county1 to be holden on the     
#bhth inst41 and he is without the means
 of defence or hope of justice1 and has 
a wife and two children dependent on him

 for support1 he is placed in           
circumstances of peculiar anxiety4      
',hence your memorialist earnestly hopes
 that you will direct that his papers1  
seized as before mentioned1 be          
immediately restored to him1 and also   
that he be allowed free access to such  
works and papers as he may deem         
necessary for his defence1 and that     
without further delay4  '7signed7       
,george ,jacob ,holyoake4  ',county     
,gaol1 ,gloucester1 ,june #ad1 #ahdb4'  
,the papers were afterwards returned2   
but1 had it not been for friends in the 
,house of ,commons1 and in various parts
 of the country1 ,i should have been    
deprived of the materials for my        
defence4 ,public opinion did for me that
 which ,christian charity refused499    
99  ,at the ,gloucester ,trinity        
,sessions1 ,mr4 ,r4 ,b4 ,cooper         
stated1 in contradiction of the prayer  
of this memorial1      that 'as soon as 
,i mentioned that my papers were        
necessary      for my defence they were 

returned to me4' ,mr4 ,s4 ,jones said   
he 'took my papers home1 and every one  
,i wanted for my      trial on the      
morrow ,i had given to me4' ,both these 
statements were untrue1 and ,i stated so
 at the time in the      ,cheltenham    
,free ,press1 and my assertion was never
      impugned4  ,strong prejudices     
exist against me as being a ,socialist4 
,your local newspapers have denounced me
 on this ground4 ,to show that ,i       
deserve no condemnation on this account 
,i shall draw your attention to the     
nature of ,socialism4 ,i have here a    
little book1 stated to be published by  
the ',society for ,promoting ,christian 
,knowledge4' ,if it had been stated to  
be a 'society' for disseminating        
'malicious knowledge' the title-page    
would have been correct--for a more     
gross series of misrepresentations were 
never strung together4 ,if what it says 
of ,socialism were true1 then ,i might  
be abused2 but ,socialism as ,i have    
learned or explained it1 would never    

lead to the injury of peace or the      
disturbance of public order4 ,the first 
paragraph of ,godwin's ',political      
,justice' is an epitome of ,socialism as
 developed in this country hitherto s it
 is 'an investigation concerning that   
form of political society1 that system  
of intercourse and reciprocal action    
extending beyond the bounds of a single 
family1 which shall be found most       
conducive to the general benefit--how   
may the peculiar and independent        
operation of each individual in the     
social state most effectually be        
preserved--how may the security each man
 ought to possess as to his life1 and   
the employments of his faculties        
according to the dictates of his own    
understanding1 be most certainly        
defended from invasion--how may the     
individuals of the human species be made
 to contribute most substantially to    
general improvement and happiness4' ,but
 ,i shall not content myself with one   
authority2 and to avoid the charge of   

presumption1 ,i have gathered much of my
 defence from other men's writings1 and 
shall make them speak for me4           
,socialists have been declared to have  
dangerous metaphysical notions4 ,the    
whole question has been expressed by the
 poet-philosopher ,goethe in four lines1
 translated by ,ebenezer ,elliott1      
thus--       ,how like a stithy is this 
land6      ,and we lie on it1 like good 
metal      ,long hammer'd by a senseless
 hand2      ,but will such thumping make
 a kettle8  ,meaning that senseless     
hammering and senseless legislation     
could neither make the dull iron into a 
kettle1 nor a vicious people into an    
enlightened nation4 ,socialism says1 all
 men have in them the true metal--the   
elements of goodness1 which all         
governments are responsible for         
moulding4 ,socialism proposes to        
substitute other means than punishments 
for the prevention of crime1 and that   
you may not think these chimeras of my  
own1 ,i will read you the opinion of a  

,lord ,cardinal to a certain ,high      
,chancellor of ,england1 ,sir ,thomas   
,more1 who1 in his ',utopia4' says1     
',when ,i was in ,england1 the king     
depended much on his councils4444  ,one 
day when ,i was dining with him there   
happened to be at table one of the      
,english lawyers1 who took occasion to  
run out in high commendation of the     
severe execution of justice upon        
thieves1 who1 as he said1 were then     
hanged so fast that there were sometimes
 twenty on one gibbet6 and upon that he 
said1 he could not wonder enough how it 
came to pass1 that since so few escaped 
there were so many thieves left1 who    
were still robbing in all places4 ,upon 
this1 ,i 7who took the boldness to speak
 freely before the cardinal7 said1 there
 was no reason to wonder at the matter1 
since this way of punishing thieves was 
neither just in itself nor good for the 
public2 for as the severity was too     
great1 so the remedy was not effectual2 
simple theft not being so great a crime1

 that it ought to cost a man his life3  
no punishment1 how severe soever1 being 
able to restrain those from robbing who 
can find no other way of livelihood4 ,in
 this 7said ,i7 not only you in ,england
 but a great part of the world1 imitate 
some ill masters1 that are readier to   
chastise their scholars than teach them4
 ,there are dreadful punishments enacted
 against thieves1 but it were much      
better to make such good provisions by  
which every man might be put in a method
 how to live and so be preserved from   
the fatal necessity of stealing1 and of 
dying for it4' ,socialism would try to  
obtain a remedy for the evils which     
judges go round year by year lamenting2 
,socialism would suggest a means of     
affording employment1 and thus mitigate 
the crime which judges and juries are   
called to punish4  ,such objects may be 
declared chimerical1 but surely it is   
not criminal to hope that they can be   
carried out1 and to feel that they      
ought4 ,i could read many other passages

 to show that under no circumstance     
,socialism merits that character which  
has been ascribed to it ,but ,i do not  
deem it necessary1 as ,i think ,i have  
said enough to prove that4 ,nor do ,i   
want to instil my sentiments1 but merely
 to disabuse your minds of a prejudice  
which has been disseminated to my       
disadvantage4  ,my assuming the right of
 free expression inculcated by ,mr4     
,owen1 and when asked a question1       
refusing to equivocate1 are opposed1 it 
would appear1 to the laws of this       
country4 ,but this ,i have learned from 
,socialism1 that there can be no public 
or private virtue1 unless the foundation
 of action is the practice of truth4    
,passing through ,cheltenham to pay a   
visit to a friend1 ,i delivered a       
lecture4 ,after which the words were    
uttered which are here indicted4 ,when  
,i had read the ,cheltenham ,chronicle1 
in the city of ,bristol1 ,i returned to 
,cheltenham4 ,if ,i had been conscious  
of guilt1 should ,i have returned8 ,on  

the night of my apprehension marks of   
kindness were shown me by the people4   
,if ,i had acted disgracefully1 would   
the people of ,cheltenham have met a    
stranger and showed him marks of esteem 
and friendship8 ,i went to the          
station-house and remained there all    
night4 ,when taken before the           
magistrates1 ,mr4 ,capper told me ,i was
 not fit to be reasoned with1 because ,i
 did not believe in a ,god1 and that it 
was from a love of notoriety that ,i    
acted3 but from the love of mere        
notoriety ,i have never uttered any     
sentiments1 for ,i hold such conduct in 
contempt4 ,after ,i was taken from the  
magistrates' office1 ,i was treated with
 contumely at the police-station4       
,surgeon ,pinching1 finding me          
completely in his power1 said he was    
sorry the days were gone by when ,i     
could hold up my head1 and wished the   
inquisition could be put in force       
against such persons as myself4 ,i was  
thrust into a filthy cell1 and my hands 

were bolted together and the skin       
pinched off4 ,i was brought to          
,gloucester on a sultry day1 and should 
have been made to walk had not some     
friends interfered and obtained         
permission for me to ride1 on paying my 
own fare and that of two policemen4     
,there was no indication from my manner 
that ,i wished to make my escape1 and   
the company of two policemen was        
sufficient to prevent it4 ,it was       
thought if ,i was chained like a felon  
and dragged through two towns1 it would 
wound my feelings4 ,if these are the    
ways in which the truths of             
,christianity are to be taught1 ,i leave
 you to judge of them4 ,two of your     
magistrates conversed with me1 and      
shouted with much rudeness that ,i was a
 fool for holding my opinions4 ,i never 
could have said this to any man1 and yet
 such treatment ,i received from        
magistrates old enough to be my         
grandfathers4  ,here ,mr4 ,bransby      
,cooper1 who sat upon the left of the   

,judge1 was so moved by this remark1    
that he rose and ejaculated something in
 ,court2 but the ,judge peremptorily    
commanded him to sit down4  ,mr4        
,holyoake then read the memorial of the 
public meeting of the inhabitants of    
,cheltenham1 before quoted1 referring to
 the conduct1 at the examination1 of    
,joseph ,overbury1 ,robert ,capper1 and 
the ,rev4 ,t4 ,b4 ,newell1 ,d4,d41      
magistrates4  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4   
,you ought not to read any statement not
 authenticated by evidence1 which       
reflects on any person4  ,defendant4    
,this is a petition of a public meeting4
  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,it is not    
evidence4  ,defendant continued4 ,i have
 never been anxious under any           
circumstances to obtrude my opinions on 
the public4 ,i confined myself strictly 
to the subject on which ,i lectured1 and
 should not have introduced my          
sentiments on religion1 should not have 
spoken another word after my lecture1 if
 ,i had not been publicly questioned4 ,i

 have held various situations1 and in   
all secular ones ,i have strictly kept  
religious opinions out of view4 ,it is  
known that ,i have taught that and that 
only which ,i have been employed to     
teach4 ,in proof of this ,i may cite    
testimonials given me upon the occasion 
of my applying for the situation of     
collector at the ,birmingham ,botanic   
,gardens4 ,they are from magistrates and
 gentlemen of ,birmingham1 and the post 
was one requiring a person of trust1 as 
considerable funds would have to pass   
through his hands in a year4  ,mr4      
,holyoake here quoted from numerous     
testimonials4 ,one of them1 from a      
magistrate1 ,f4 ,lloyd1 ,esq41 stated   
that ,mr4 ,holyoake obtained the first  
prize at the ,mechanics' ,institute1    
some years ago1 for proficiency in      
mathematics1 a proficiency attained1    
too1 under most discouraging            
circumstances4' ,another of the         
testimonials was from the ,rev4 ,s4     
,bache1 one of the ministers of the ,new

 ,meeting ,house congregation4 ,having  
read these documents1 ,mr4 ,holyoake    
resumed4  ,during one of those          
commercial panics1 which a few years ago
 passed over this country like a        
pestilence1 my parents were suddenly    
reduced from a state of comparative     
affluence to one of privation4 ,at one  
of these seasons my little sister became
 ill4 ,while she was so the ,rev4 ,mr4  
,moseley1 ,m4,a41 ,rector of ,st1       
,martin's1 ,birmingham1 sent an order to
 us for his ,easter due of fourpence4   
,on previous occasions this demand had  
been cheerfully and promptly paid2 but  
now1 small as the sum was1 it was       
sufficient materially to diminish the   
few comforts our house of illness       
unfortunately afforded2 and it was      
therefore discussed whether the demand  
of the clergyman should be paid1 or     
whether it should be expended in the    
purchase of some little comforts for my 
sick sister4 ,humanity decided2 and we  
all agreed that it should be devoted to 

this latter purpose4 ,it was2 but1 ,i   
think1 the very next week1 a summons    
came for the ,easter due1 and two       
shillings and sixpence were added1      
because of the non-payment of the       
fourpence4 ,the payment of this could   
now no longer be evaded1 for in a few   
days a warrant of distraint would have  
rudely torn the bed from under her1 as  
had been the case with a near neighbour4
 ,dreading this1 and trembling at the   
apprehension1 we gathered together all  
the money we had1 and which was being   
saved to purchase a little wine to      
moisten the parched lips of my dying    
sister1 for at this time her end seemed 
approaching4 ,my mother1 with a heavy   
heart1 left home to go to the ,public   
,office4 ,the aisles there were cold and
 cheerless like the outside this court1 
and there1 all broken in health and     
spirits1 worn out with watching1 and    
distracted by that anxiety for her child
 a parent1 under such circumstances1    
only could feel1 she was kept from five 

to six hours waiting to pay the two     
shillings and ten-pence4 ,when she      
returned all was over--my sister was    
dead4 ,gentlemen1 will you wonder if1   
after this1 ,i doubted a little the     
utility of church establishments899 and 
if1 after the circumstances ,i have     
related1 ,i did not think so highly of  
church 'as by law established' as       
before1 can you be surprised8 ,can you  
punish me for it8 ,at this point many   
ladies wept1 and the ,court manifested  
considerable attention4       99 ,i have
 since learned that ,mr4 ,w4 ,j4 ,fox   
read this passage      in a ,sunday     
morning lecture on the events of the    
month1      delivered at ,south-place in
 the ,september following my      trial2
 and ,i take this opportunity of        
acknowledging that ,mr4      ,fox was   
the only occupant of a pulpit from whom 
,i received a      friendly line during 
my entire imprisonment4  ,i have been   
told to look around the world for       
evidences of the truth of the ,christian

 religion2 to look upon the world and   
draw different conclusions4 ,it is well 
for those who enjoy the smiles of       
fortune to say so4 ,for them all shines 
brightly--for them all is fair4 ,but ,i 
can see cause of complaint1 and ,i am   
not alone in the feeling4 ,mr4 ,capel   
,lofft had said1 'the sours of life less
 offend my taste than its sweets delight
 it4' ,on this ,kirke ,white wrote3--   
,go to the raging sea1 and say      ',be
 still6' ,bid the wild lawless winds    
obey thy will2      ,preach to the      
storm1 and reason with despair--        
,but tell not misery's son that life is 
fair4  ,thou1 who in plenty's lavish lap
 hast roll'd1 ,and every year with new  
delight hast told--,thou1 who1 recumbent
 on the lacquer'd barge1 ,hast dropt    
down joy's gay stream of pleasant marge1
 ,thou may'st extol life's calm1        
untroubled sea--,the storms of misery   
ne'er burst on thee4 ,go to the mat     
where squalid want reclines2 ,go to the 
shade obscure where merit pines2 ,abide 

with him whom ,penury's charms control1 
,and bind the rising yearnings of his   
soul--,survey his sleepless couch1 and1 
standing there1 ,tell the poor pallid   
wretch that life is fair6  ,lo6 o'er his
 manly form1 decay'd and wan1 ,the      
shades of death with gradual steps steal
 on2 ,and the pale mother1 pining to    
decay1 ,weeps1 for her boy1 her wretched
 life away4  ,go1 child of fortune6 to  
his early grave1 ,where o'er his head   
obscure the rank weeda wave2 ,behold the
 heart-wrung parent lay her head ,on the
 cold turf1 and ask to share his bed4   
,go1 child of fortune1 take thy lesson  
there1 ,and tell us then that life is   
wondrous fair4  ,as ,i grew up ,i       
attended missionary meetings1 and my few
 pence were given to that cause4 ,when  
told of heathen kings who knew not ,god1
 and caged their miserable victims1 ,i  
shuddered at their barbarity and prayed 
for their conversion4 ,o waste of money 
and prayers that should have been       
employed on ,christian men4 ,o infantile

 fatuity6 ,do ,i not reap the whirlwind 
for my pains8 ,i learned the accents of 
piety from my mother's lips4 ,she was   
and still is a religious woman4         
,whatever may be the dissent ,i         
entertain1 ,i have never spoken of her  
opinions in the language of contempt4 ,i
 have always left her 7as she to her    
honour has left me71 to enjoy her own   
opinions4 ,in early youth ,i was        
religious4 ,i question whether there is 
any here who have spent more time than  
,i did as a ,sunday school teacher4 ,i  
have given hours1 which ,i ought to have
 employed in improving myself1 in       
improving others4 ,it is not without    
giving to ,christianity time and        
attention--without knowing what it      
was--that ,i have given it up4 ,some    
lines ,i contributed to a religious     
publication at that time1 will show the 
tone of thought which inquiry has       
subsequently changed3--       ,,the     
,,reign ,,of ,,time4       ,the proudest
 earthly buildings show1      ,time can 

all things devour2      ,e'en youth and 
beauty's ardent glow1      ,and         
manhood's intellectual brow1            
,betray the spoiler's power3      ,how  
soon we sink beneath his sway--      ,he
 glances1 and our heads turn gray4      
,though1 over all this earthly ball1    
,time's standard is unfurled1      ,and 
ruins loud to ruins call                
,throughout this time-worn world--      
,yet from this wreck of earthly things1 
,see how the soul exulting springs4     
,and after the archangel's wand         
,has wav'd o'er earth and sea1      ,and
 ,time has stopped at his command1      
,the soul will nourish and expand       
,through all eternity4                  
,religion--lovely1 fair1 and free--     
,holds forth this immortality4      ,by 
all the glories of the sky1      ,to    
mortals yet unknown--      ,and by the  
worm that ne'er shall die1      ,the    
fires that always burn--      ,by all   
that's awful or sublime1      ,ye sons  
of men improve your time499             

99 ',baptist ,tract ,magazine4' ,vol4   
ii41 p4 #cda4   ,it was stated by one of
 the magistrates that my being of no    
religion was no crime4 ,i may conclude  
from what ,i heard this morning that ,i 
am not to be punished for not being     
religious4 ,it was argued in1 the       
,cheltenham ,chronicle that my          
expressing my opinions was no crime1 and
 ,i was at some loss to know what my    
crime was4 ,the charge stated ,i was    
guilty of blasphemy4 ,in the depositions
 made against me1 it is stated that ,i  
was brought before the ,cheltenham      
magistrates on a charge of felony4 ,i   
believe now what ,i have to answer is   
the accusation of uttering certain words
 offensive to the ,cheltenham           
,chronicle4  ,this paper stated that    
'three persons were ready to give       
evidence on the matter4' ,and yet the   
witness says he knew nothing of it till 
the policeman came for him4 ,he says    
they were 'chaffing' about my remarks in
 the office--that is1 joking upon them4 

,it does not say much for his           
seriousness--reporting these 'horrid    
sentiments' at night1 and the next      
morning 'chaffing' about them4 ,if it   
was an aggravation of my crime to have  
chosen an innocent subject1 what would  
the learned counsel have said if ,i had 
chosen a guilty one8 ,it has been sworn 
by the witnesses that ,i said ,i did not
 believe there was such a thing as a    
,god1 and an attempt has been made to   
make you believe that ,i used the term  
'thing' contemptuously1 but the witness 
admits that ,i did not use it in a      
contemptuous sense4 ,the same word      
occurs in some lines by ,thomas         
,moore3--       ,man1 in the sunshine of
 the world's new spring1      ,shall    
walk transparent like some holy thing4  
,i must have used the word 'thing' in   
some such sense as it is used in these  
lines4  ,it is laid down by the ,common 
,law1 that a person denying the         
existence of a ,god is a blasphemer4 ,it
 has not been shown that ,i did this4 ,i

 merely stated my disbelief--and        
disbelief is not included by the law4   
,there is a great difference between    
denial and disbelief4 ,if ,i had said   
distinctly 'there is no ,god1' it would 
have been stating that ,i was quite sure
 of it4 ,i could not have said that1    
because ,i am not sure of it4 ,i saw    
reasons for disbelief1 but did not      
assert denial4 ,disbelief is all ,i     
profess4 ,those dogmatise who affirm1   
rather than those who deny a            
proposition4 ,mr4 ,southwell put this   
point in its proper light3--  ',if ,god 
had never been affirmed1 he could not   
have been denied4 ,it is a rule of      
logic1 and a very sensible rule1 that   
the onus probandi1 that is the burthen  
or weight of proving1 rests on those who
 affirm a proposition4 ,priests have    
affirmed the existence of a ,god1 but   
who will maintain that they have        
complied with the rule of logic8'99  ,we
 can only1 ,i think1 arrive at a        
conviction of the existence of a ,god by

 the following modes3--  #a4 ,by the    
medium of innate ideas1 which we are    
said by some divines to possess1 and    
which intuitively lead us to entertain  
the idea of a ,god4  #b4 ,by the senses1
 the sole media by which all knowledge  
is acquired4  #c4 ,by conjecture4--,this
 is employed by those who suppose there 
must be a ,god from their inability     
otherwise to account for the existence  
of the universe1 and are not willing to 
allow it to be inexplicable4  #d4 ,by   
analogy4--,comparison is the basis of   
this argument4 ,analogy is the          
foundation of natural theology4  #e4 ,by
 revelation4--,in this country the      
,bible is said to contain the revelation
 of a ,god4  ,of these it may be        
remarked3--  #a4 ,innate ideas4--,with  
regard to these1 very conclusive reasons
 have been advanced by eminent          
philosophers for disbelieving that we   
have any4 ,and human experience confirms
 this conclusion4 ,some nations1 as the 
people of the ,arru ,islands1 have no   

idea of a ,god4 ,so this source of      
knowledge concerning one is1 to say the 
least1 dubious4  #b4 ,senses4--',no man 
hath seen ,god at any time1' is a       
sufficient reply to this--for the same  
may be affirmed of every other sense1   
which is here affirmed of sight4  #c4   
,conjecture4--,this defies us4 ,we only 
prove our own inability and multiply    
difficulties4 ,for when we suppose a    
,god1 we cannot suppose how he came1 nor
 how he created something out of        
nothing1 which is held by the learned to
 be plainly impossible49999       99    
,oracle of ,reason1 ,no4 #ca1 p4 #bea4  
9999 ,since this time ,mr4 ,francis     
,william ,newman has put this           
argument unanswerably in these words2   
',a ,god uncaused and      existing from
 eternity1 is to the full as            
incomprehensible      as a world        
uncaused and existing from              
eternity'--',the ,soul1'      p4 #cf4   
,second edition4  #d4 ,analogy will not 
inform us4 ,a small pivot or wheel      

cannot infallibly indicate to us the    
mechanism to which it belongs1 nor      
anything conclusive as to whether the   
whole had only one or more makers4 ,so  
of the universe1 no part can shadow     
forth the whole of that1 nor inform us  
conclusively whether it had a creator or
 creators4 ,and here it is to be        
observed the difficulty is greater than 
with machines--for a pivot or wheel is a
 finite part of a finite whole1 and both
 comprehensible2 but with the universe1 
all we can take cognisance of is but a  
very finite part of an infinite whole1  
and that whole to all men acknowledged  
incomprehensible4 ,moreover1 creation   
can have no analogy--no one ever saw or 
can conceive of anything being created4 
,so that this mode of learning the      
existence of a ,god fails4 ,the ,rev4   
,hugh ,m',neile1 ,m4,a41 minister of    
,st4 ,jade's ,church1 ,liverpool1 in a  
lecture delivered to above four hundred 
of the ,irish clergy1 at the ,rotunda in
 ,dublin1 said in reference to this part

 of the question1 ',i am convinced1 ,i  
say1 that1 from external creation1 no   
right conclusion can be drawn concerning
 the moral character of ,god4 ,creation 
is too deeply and disastrously blotted  
in consequence of man's sin1 to admit of
 any satisfactory result from an        
adequate contemplation of nature4 ,the  
authors of a multitude of books on this 
subject1 have given an inadequate and   
partial induction of particulars4       
,already aware 7though perhaps scarcely 
recognising how or whence7 that ,god is 
love1 they have looked on nature for    
proofs of this conclusion1 and taken    
what suited their purpose4 ,but they    
have not taken nature as a whole1 and   
collected a conclusion fairly from      
impartial premises4 ,they expatiate on  
the blessings and enjoyments of life1 in
 the countless tribes of earth1 air1 and
 sea4 ,but if life be a blessing1 death 
is a curse4 ,nature presents the        
universal triumph of death4 ,is this the
 doing of a ,god of love8 or are there  

two ,gods--a kind one1 giving life2 and 
an unkind one taking it away2 and the   
wicked one invariably the victor8 ,in   
external creation1 exclusively and      
adequately contemplated1 there is no    
escape from ,manichaeism4 ,it is vain to
 say that the death of the inferior     
creatures is a blessing to man2 for why1
 in the creation of a ,god of love1     
should any such necessity exist8 ,and   
how would this account for the death of 
man himself8' ,so far the argument of   
analogy4  #e4 ,revelation4--,we have    
none4 ,if others ever had1 we can only  
determine it by human reason1 and for   
this purpose ,leslie has furnished his  
well-known rules4 ,therefore1 as        
revelation means something superadded to
 reason1 we cannot be said to possess   
it1 for reason has to determine what is1
 and what is not revelation1 and        
therefore is superior to it4 ,also1 it  
is contended by divines that1 but for   
the ,bible we should know nothing of a  
,god1 which shows the unsatisfactory    

nature of the four methods of learning  
his existence we have gone through4 ,and
 ,lord ,brougham contends that but for  
natural theology1 or the analogy        
argument1 which has been shown to be no 
argument at all1 the ,bible would have  
no other basis than mere tradition4  ,so
 you see1 gentlemen1 the philosophical  
difficulties besetting the path of a    
young inquirer into sacred things4      
,these difficulties are to me           
insuperable1 and hence ,i find myself   
incapable of employing language you are 
more fortunate in being able to adapt to
 your conscience499       99 ,the object
 of this passage was to show the jury   
the      intellectual difficulties      
belonging to this subject1 and the      
passage formed but an episode among the 
moral issues ,i      raised4 ,a friend  
of mine asking an eminent divine at one 
of      ,dr4 ,elliotson's seances1 and  
who afterwards entered      parliament1 
what he thought of my defence4 ',oh it  
turned      upon that eternal conundrum 

the existence of ,god1' was the         
answer4 ,but ,i hope the reader will see
 something more in my      defence than 
the frivolity that employs itself on    
riddles4  ,but it has been stated ,i    
said ,i would put the ,deity on         
half-pay4 ,after first stating that ,i  
did not believe there was a ,deity1 is  
it likely ,i should say ,i would put him
 on half-pay8 ,would you put a servant  
on half-pay whom you never hired or had8
 ,all my expressions went to prove that 
,i referred to the expenses of religion4
 ,i could not suppose that there is a   
being capable of governing the world1   
and consider him good and kind1 and yet 
have any intention of bringing him into 
contempt4 ,i had no personal reference  
to the ,deity4 ,i made use of that      
figure of speech because ,i thought they
 would understand it better1 and they   
did understand it4 ,i was saying we had 
many heavy burdens to pay to capitalists
 and others1 and that ,i thought it hung
 like a millstone round us4 ,sir ,r4    

,peel said1 when he introduced the      
income-tax1 that the poor man could bear
 no more4 ,i said there were twenty-four
 millions taken from us for the support 
of religion1 and that they would do well
 to reduce that one-half4 ,suppose1     
gentlemen1 that ,i did refer to the     
,deity1 was my notion a dishonourable   
one8 ,what man of you who had enough and
 to spare1 and seeing the people around 
him in poverty1 would not willingly     
relinquish part of his income to give   
them a bare subsistence8 ,who will deny 
that in ,england there are honest1      
industrious1 hard-working men1          
honourable women1 and beautiful         
children1 who have not the means of     
obtaining food8 ,did ,i do him a        
disgrace if ,i thought he1 who is called
 our ,father1 the ,most ,high1 would    
have dispensed with one-half of the     
lip-service he receives in order to give
 his creatures necessaries6  ,it being  
nearly four o'clock the ,jury asked     
leave to retire1 to which ,mr4 ,holyoake

 consenting1 they left the ,court for a 
short time4 ,some ladies who represented
 themselves as wives of clergymen1 came 
round the dock offering ,mr4 ,holyoake  
confections and refreshment1 and        
expressing their regret at the treatment
 he had received1 and the position in   
which he was placed4  ,mr4 ,holyoake1 on
 resuming1 said--,according to a        
calculation that has never been         
disputed1 the  ',pay to their ,clergy4  
,catholics1 numbering444                
#abd1fgb1jjj444      ,l#f1ajf1jjj       
,protestants          444               
#ed1jdf1jjj444      #aa1ijf1jjj         
,greek ,church         444              
#da1jjj1jjj444         #gfj1jjj         
,total of ,christians                   
#bai1gah1jjj        ,l#ah1gfb1jjj  ',of 
which ,england1 for twenty-one millions 
of people1 pays more than one-half4'99  
,thus the ,english pay five times more  
according to their numbers--,i proposed 
a reduction of only one-half4       99  
',cheap ,salvation4'   ,by ,henry       

,hetheringten4  ,mr4 ,w4 ,j4 ,fox has   
told us--',if the government of the     
country disposed of the mismanaged funds
 of the clergy1 they would have         
sufficient for their annual needful     
expenditure4'  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4  
,if you can convince the jury that you  
only meaning was that the incomes of the
 clergy ought to be reduced1 and that   
you did not intend to insult ,god1 ,i   
should tell the jury you ought not to be
 convicted4 ,you need not go into a     
laboured defence of that4  ,mr4         
,holyoake4 ,it was stated by one of the 
witnesses at ,cheltenham that ,i said   
,christians are worshippers of ,mammon4 
,i thought it necessary for me to refer 
to it4  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,there  
is no evidence of that4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4
 ,then turn to the question ,what is    
blasphemy8 ,in the case of ,mr4         
,southwell1 one of the witnesses for the
 prosecution stated his opinion that the
 crime was 'bringing a scandal on the   
religion of the magistrates4' ,perhaps  

this is as correct a definition as can  
be given4 ,it has been said to be 'an   
injury to ,god1' ,men who could not     
string six sentences together           
grammatically1 have told me they would  
defend ,god--men whom ,i should be      
ashamed to have defending me4 ,but      
blasphemy is impossible in the sense of 
annoyance to ,god4 ,jonathan ,edwards   
says--',the following things may be laid
 down as maxims of plain truth and      
indisputable evidence3--  '#a4 ,that    
,god is a perfectly happy being1 in the 
most absolute and highest sense         
possible4  '#b4 ,it will follow from    
hence1 that ,god is free from everything
 that is contrary to happiness3 and so  
that in strict propriety of speech there
 is no such thing as any pain1 grief or 
trouble in ,god4  '#c4 ,where any       
intelligent being is really crossed and 
disappointed1 and things are contrary to
 what he truly desires1 he is less      
pleased1 or has the less pleasure1 his  
pleasure and happiness are diminished1  

and he suffers what is disagreeable to  
him1 or is the subject of something that
 is of a nature contrary to joy and     
happiness1 even pain and grief4  ',from 
this last maxim it follows1 that if no  
distinction is to be admitted between   
,god's hatred of sin1 and his will with 
respect to the event and existence of   
sin1 as the all-wise determiner of all  
events1 under the view of all           
consequences through the whole com pass 
and series of things2 ,i say1 then1 it  
certainly follows1 that the coming to   
pass of every individual act of sin is  
truly1 all things considered1 contrary  
to his will1 and that his will is really
 crossed in it1 and that in proportion  
as he hates it4 ,and as ,god's hatred of
 sin is infinite1 by reason of the      
infinite contrariety of his holy nature 
to sin2 so his will is infinitely       
crossed in every act of sin that        
happens4 ,which is as much as to        
say3--he endures that which is          
infinitely disagreeable to him1 by means

 of every act of sin he sees            
committed--and so he must be infinitely 
crossed and suffer infinite pain every  
day1 in millions of millions of         
instances1 which would be to make him   
infinitely the most miserable of all    
beings4'99  ,but blasphemy is an        
antiquated accusation4 ,in a work9999 by
 ,col4 ,feyronnet ,thompson1 it is      
remarked--'what a turmoil1 what a       
splutter1 was in this land1 when men    
first announced that they would not eat 
fish1 they would not bow down1 they     
would not confess but when they liked1  
and this because the secret had got wind
 that these things were either not in   
the priests' own rule1 or were against  
it6 ,what threats of hell flames1 what  
splashing about of fire and brimstone1  
what registration of judgments on men   
choked with a beef-steak on ,friday6    
,look at one of those simple men in the 
present day1 who shock themselves with  
the barouches1 the cigars1 the          
newspapers1 and the elephants of a      

,london ,sunday1 and occasionally       
digress to ,paris1 for the keener       
excitation of seeing ,punch upon the    
,boulevards1 and wondering where heaven 
reserves its thunder4 ,and put the      
parallel case2 that a good ,austrian or 
,navarrese ,catholic came here1 and     
grieved his heart with our weekly doings
 on a ,friday1 to say nothing of our    
more wholesale offences for forty days  
together in ,lent4 ,such frying2 such   
barbecuing2 in no place did ,i see      
anybody having the smallest notion of a 
red herring6 ,all are involved in one   
flood of sin and gravy6 ,how fathomless 
the patience of heaven1 that such an    
island is not swallowed up of the deep6 
,we have looked into the rule he        
professes to go by2 and we declare it is
 not there1 but the contrary4 ,we know  
we must appear in the next world with   
all our mutton on our heads4 ,but we    
have done our best to look at the rule  
with the light that ,god has given us2  
and in spite of ,austria or ,navarre1 we

 will take the risk of ,his not being   
angry with us1 for seeing no prohibition
 of mutton there4' ,thus we see that    
mutton-eating was at one period         
blasphemous4       99 ,quoted from ',a  
,commentary on the ,public ,discussion  
on the      subjects of ,necessity and  
,responsibility1' c ,by ,jonathan       
,jonathan1 late of the ,united ,states4 
9999  ',the ,question of ,sabbath       
,observance1 tried by the      ,church's
 own rule1' c4 ,by ,col4 ,peyronnet     
,thompson1 ,f4,r4,s1      of ,queen's   
,college1 ,cambridge4  ,mr4 ,sergeant   
,talfourd told the jury1 in the case of 
,hetherington v4 ,moxon1 that if the    
government were consistent in carrying  
out prosecutions for                    
blasphemy--,shakspere1 ,milton1 ,byron1 
,shelley1 ,southey--might be prohibited4
 ,this perhaps would be an agreeable    
result to a reverend gentleman well     
known in this court and county1 who says
 all science should be destroyed2 but ,i
 trust you entertain no such feelings1  

and that if ,i can show that my         
sentiments cannot be productive of harm1
 you will feel called upon to acquit me4
 ,i claim no inherent right of          
expressing my opinions1 ,i only contend 
for liberty of expression because       
required for the public good4 ,a        
doctrine was laid down by ,lord ,john   
,russell upon the occasion of the       
presentation of the ,national ,petition1
 which ,i will quote as a view of the   
subject of human rights well expressed4 
',i am aware1' he said1 'that it is a   
doctrine frequently urged1 and ,i       
perceive dwelt upon in this petition1   
that every male of a certain age has a  
right1 absolute and inalienable1 to     
elect a representative to take his place
 among the members in the ,commons'     
,house of ,parliament4 ,now1 sir1 ,i    
never could understand that indefeasible
 right4 ,it appears to me that that     
question1 like every other in the       
practical application of politics1 is to
 be settled by the institutions and the 

laws of the country of which the person 
is a native4 ,i see no more right that a
 person twenty-one years of age has to  
elect a member of parliament than he has
 to be a juryman4 ,i conceive that you  
may just as well say that every adult   
male has a right to sit upon a jury to  
decide the most complicated and         
difficult questions of property1 or that
 every man has a right to exercise the  
judicial functions1 as the people did in
 some of the republics of antiquity4    
,these things1 as it appears to me1 are 
not matters of right2 but if it be for  
the good of the people at large1 if it  
be conducive to the right government of 
the state1 if it tend to the maintenance
 of the freedom and welfare of the      
people1 that a certain number1 defined  
and limited by a reference to a fixed   
standard of property1 should have the   
right of electing members of parliament1
 and if it be disadvantageous to the    
community at large that the right of    
suffrage should be universal1 then ,i   

say that on such a subject the          
consideration of the public good should 
prevail1 that legislation must act upon 
it as on every other1 and that no       
inalienable right can be quoted against 
that which the good of the whole        
demands4'  ,if ,lord ,russell did not1  
,i do see a difference between the claim
 of an elector and the right of a       
juryman4 ,the elector is chiefly        
concerned with his own interests1 the   
juryman with other people's--one is     
simple1 the other complex4 ,but with the
 measure of right laid down by his      
lordship in the sentiments ,i have      
quoted1 ,i perfectly accord1 and if it  
could be shown that freedom of          
expression produced public harm1 then ,i
 would give it up4 ,but ,i believe such 
a right would produce good1 and         
therefore ,i claim it at your hands upon
 the ground of public good4  ,in what ,i
 urge1 it is not faith but reason1 as   
far as ,i understand it1 that ,i take   
for my guide--a rule of argument ,i     

trust you will accept4 ',reason contents
 me1' was inscribed as the motto on the 
seal of the letter from ,sir ,james     
,graham1 acknowledging the receipt of   
the ,cheltenham memorial4 ,if reason    
'contents' the ,secretary of ,state1 and
 'fountain of justice1' surely it ought 
to 'content' the channels through which 
such justice is diffused over society4  
,reason would always be preferred by us 
were we not differently instructed4     
',bewildered1' says ,diderot1 'in an    
immense forest during the night1 and    
having only one small torch for my      
guide1 a stranger approaches and thus   
addresses me3 ,friend1 blow out thy     
light if thou wouldst make sure of the  
right path ,the forest was the          
world--the light was my reason---the    
stranger was a priest4'  ,after several 
quotations showing the dubious and often
 pernicious influence of sacred         
authority1 ,mr4 ,holyoake               
observed---,religious sanctions are     
regarded only by the ignorant1 whom they

 confirm in folly4 ,the good find their 
sanction in the satisfaction ef a       
virtuous act performed4 ,in an address  
of the ,rev4 ,f4 ,close1 delivered a    
short time since at the ,church of      
,england ,tradesmen and ,working ,men's 
,association of ,cheltenham1 he said1   
'that the more a man is advanced in     
human knowledge1 the more is he opposed 
to religion1 and the more deadly enemy  
he is to the truth of ,god4' ,if this   
,christian minister is to be believed1  
then may you burn your books--forsake   
all mental refinement--and be equal in  
piety and ignorance4 ,if ,christianity  
is opposed to human improvement1 then   
should all systems of ignorance be      
patronised by ,christians4 ,sentiments  
like these would lead us to give up     
,boyle1 ,locke1 and ,newton1 and regard 
them1 with the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,close1 with  
detestation4  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4   
,let me see the discourse of ,mr4 ,close
 from which you are quoting4  ,the book 
was handed to his lordship4  ,mr4       

,holyoake4 ,if the correctness of that  
report be doubted1 ,i may state that the
 sentiments of ,mr4 ,close were replied 
to by ,mr4 ,g4 ,berkeley4  ,permit me   
now to draw your attention strongly to  
what has been said by men in authority  
of the impolicy of these                
prosecutions--that even if you were     
justified in inflicting punishment on   
me1 it would not be wise to do so1 ,lord
 ,brougham1 three or four years ago1    
said1 ',i may underrate the power of    
truth opposed to error1 and ,i may      
overrate the good sense of my fellow    
country men in rejecting it1 but one    
thing ,i do not overrate--the power of  
persecution to spread that which        
persecution only can spread4' ,when ,i  
walk through any of those ancient       
places1 as ,i did yesterday through your
 beautiful cathedral1 ,i feel the       
majesty they ever present1 and think of 
the manner in which our ,catholic       
ancestors acted on the minds of men4    
,there were sublimity and pageantry and 

pomp to create awe4 ,we have none now of
 that beauty of architecture in our     
meagre churches and more meagre chapels4
 ,they had a service more imposing than 
we ever had4 ,recollecting all these    
things1 ,i have wondered how anything   
could be found sufficiently powerful to 
shake them off4 ,i have wondered how    
,luther1 with his rude vulgarity1 could 
have effected so much4 ,i can only      
account for it in this way--that when   
the ,catholics dragged his followers to 
gaol1 it was found that human feelings  
were stronger than human creeds4  ,these
 prosecutions are entirely in opposition
 to the sentiments promulgated by       
yourselves1 as appears from a book given
 me in gaol called the ',manual of      
,devotion4' ,i amused myself by         
contracting the profession contained in 
it with the practice of my opponents4   
,it is published by the ',society for   
,promoting ,christian ,knowledge4' ,in  
the ',discourse concerning ,prayer1' it 
is laid down that the 'second           

qualification for prayer is charity or  
love4 ,there is nothing so contrary to  
the nature of ,god1 nothing so wide of  
the true spirit of a ,christian1 as     
bitterness and wrath1 malice and envy2  
and therefore it is vain to think that  
even our prayers can be acceptable to   
,god1 till we have put on1 as the elect 
of ,god1 bowels of mercy1 kindness1     
humbleness of mind1 meekness1           
long-suffering1 forbearing one another1 
and forgiving one another1 as ,st4 ,paul
 commands4' ,gentlemen1 where are these 
sentiments evinced in this prosecution8 
,the 'third qualification--,is faith4   
,if any of you lack wisdom1 says ,st4   
,james1 let him ask of ,god1 but let him
 ask in faith4' ,my prosecutors have    
asked ,mr4 ,bubb1 have had faith in     
policemen1 and confidence only in the   
'common law4'  ,the 'fourth             
qualification is--,that in all things of
 a temporal concern1 we must exercise an
 entire submission to the will of ,god4 
,a good ,christian will be sure to leave

 the issue in ,god's hands4' ,in my case
 not the will of ,god1 but the will of  
bigots was done1 and the 'issue' left in
 the turnkey's hands4  ,the 'fifth      
qualification--,is that the person      
praying hath a good intention2 that he  
asks for a good end4 ,we must not pray  
as the revengeful man when he prays for 
authority1 that he may have the more    
power to effect his evil designs4' ,what
 can be more wholly condemnatory of     
these proceedings than these            
instructions of the ',manual of         
,devotion8'  ,when the ',life of        
,christ1' by ,dr4 ,strauss1 appeared in 
,berlin1 contrary to usages in such     
matters1 the ,prussian government       
consulted the clergy to ascertain from  
them whether it would not be prudent to 
prohibit this extraordinary production4 
,the celebrated ,bishop ,neander was    
commissioned by the ecclesiastical body 
of ,berlin1 to peruse the book and to   
return an answer4 ,neander did so1 and  
declared in reply1 that the work        

submitted to his examination threatened1
 it was true1 the demolition of all     
creeds2 nevertheless1 he requested that 
full liberty should not be denied to his
 adversary1 in order that full and free 
discussion might be the only judges     
between truth and error4 ,and when asked
 whether it should be prosecuted1 said1 
',no1 ,i will answer it4'  ,mr4 ,justice
 ,erskine4 ,that work was temperately   
written4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,neander did  
reply to it1 and ,strauss had the       
manliness to acknowledge that it had    
corrected many of his errors4 ,would    
that have been done had he been         
prosecuted8 ,dr4 ,strauss's work on the 
scriptures got him a professor's chair  
in ,germany4 ,in this country it would  
have made him amenable to the common    
law1 and to one1 two1 or three years'   
imprisonment4  ,gentlemen1 in the       
pertinacity of my open reply to         
,maitland1 you may find something       
objectionable1 but ,i happen to be an   
admirer of that sentiment expressed by  

the honest ',vicar of ,wakefield'--',in 
all human institutions a smaller evil is
 allowed to procure a greater good2 as  
in politics1 a province may be given    
away1 to secure a kingdom2 in medicine1 
a limb may be lopt off1 to preserve the 
body4 ,but in religion1 the law is      
written and inflexible1 never to do     
evil4' ,then1 gentlemen1 ,i ought to be 
tolerated in the truthfulness of my     
answer4 ,milton1 in his ,prose ,works199
 in reference to an incident in his     
travels1 says3--       99 ,milton's     
,prose ,works1 pp4 #icc-d1 #hvo edit4   
,edited by      ,fletcher4  ',while ,i  
was on my way back to ,rome1 some       
merchants informed me that the ,english 
,jesuits had formed a plot against me1  
if ,i returned to ,rome1 because ,i had 
spoken too freely of religion2 for it   
was a rule which ,i laid down to myself 
in those places1 never to be the first  
to begin any conversation on            
religion--but1 if any questions were put
 to me concerning my faith1 to declare  

it without any reserve or fear4'  ,this 
is the rule which ,i myself have        
followed in this case4  ,since his      
lordship--with more liberality than is  
customary1 and with more philosophy than
 ,i expected on matters of religion 7on 
which ,i hear his lordship thinks very  
devoutly7--has said1 that any religion  
may be discussed in temperate language1 
it is not necessary for me to prove1 as 
,i should have done1 that it would be   
useless liberty for me to entertain     
opinions without permission to publish  
them4 ,the only question is whether1 in 
the expression of these opinions1 ,i    
used a proper kind of language4 ,i think
 ,i have proved that ,i was far from    
having any of those 'malicious' feelings
 the indictment presupposes4 ,many      
figures of speech have been used in this
 court from which my feelings revolted  
as much as those of any person could    
from what ,i said4 ,no allowance is made
 for this1 and too much importance is   
attached to what is assumed to be       

ridicule4 ,a short time ago it was      
argued1 that if the political squibs    
which are seen in shop windows were     
permitted to be published1 they would   
bring government into contempt1 and you 
would soon have no government4 ,their   
publication has been permitted4 ,have we
 no government now8 ,i feel the utility 
of a government1 and no force of        
ridicule could shake my belief in the   
importance of good government4 ,so it is
 with religion4 ,nothing that is        
uttered1 however contemptuous1 can bring
 it into contempt1 if it really is      
useful and beneficial4 ,we might defy   
all the wits and caricaturists in the   
world to bring the problems of ,euclid  
into contempt4 ,no man can bring into   
contempt that which is essential and    
true4  ,the counsel who opened the case 
did not state whether the indictment was
 at statute or common law4  ,mr4        
,justice ,erskine4 ,common law4  ,mr4   
,holyoake4 ,then1 gentleman of the jury1
 ,i shall draw your attention to that1  

and ,i hope ,i shall be able to explain 
the law bearing on my case4  ,mr4       
,justice ,erskine4 ,the jury must take  
the law from me4 ,i am responsible for  
that4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,i know1 my lord2
 but still ,i may refer to it4 ,a friend
 of mine consulted the works bearing    
upon the law of this case499 ,i have    
here the results of his labours1 and1 if
 ,i am wrong1 your lordship will1 in    
summing up1 correct me4       99 ,i was 
indebted to ,mr4 ,j4 ,homffrey ,parry1  
barrister1 for      the revision of the 
argument ,i employed4  ,gentleman of the
 jury1 the common law is a judge-made   
law4 ,a judge laid down1 some years ago1
 that to say anything against the       
,christian religion was an indictable   
offence4 ,another judge followed him and
 said the same2 and at last it came not 
to be doubted4 ,if ,i show there is no  
law properly made in parliament         
assembled1 you ought to acquit me4  ,the
 offence with which ,i am charged is an 
offence at common law4 ,there is no     

statute which punishes a man simply for 
denying the existence of ,god4 ,there is
 a statute 7#i and #aj ,wm4 ,,iii41 c4  
#cb7 directed against those who denied  
the ,trinity and who renounced          
,christianity4 ,but the former part has 
been repealed in favour of ,unitarians1 
by the #ecrd ,geo4 ,,iii41 e4 #afj2 and 
the words ,i am charged with having     
spoken cannot be brought within the     
latter4 ,there is a statute against     
profane cursing and swearing 7#ai ,geo4 
,,ii41 c4 #ba71 but it takes no         
cognisance of this offence4 ,human      
beings have also been put to death for  
witchcraft 7#cc ,hen4 ,,viii41 c4 #h2   
and #a ,james ,i41 c4 #ab71 under the   
merciless statutes which were enacted in
 times of the grossest ignorance and    
superstition2 but those statutes have   
been repealed 7#i ,geo4 ,,ii41 c4 #e74  
,this offence1 therefore1 is an offence 
against the common law1 if it is an     
offence at all4 ,it is to be found in   
the recorded decisions of the judges1 if

 it is to be found anywhere2 and the    
punishment for it is in their           
discretion4 ,had it been an offence     
under a statute1 it would have been     
impossible for me to have denied the    
authority of the statute2 but1 as it is 
an offence at common law1 it is quite   
competent for me to show that the       
authorities which have been supposed to 
constitute the offence do not warrant   
such a construction4 ,should your       
lordship even declare that you had no   
doubt upon the subject1 it would still  
be competent for me to bring before you 
the decisions of former judges1 to argue
 upon those decisions1 and to show1 if  
,i could1 that there was some mistake or
 error running throughout the whole of  
them4 ,your lordship1 ,i am sure1 will  
admit that judges are fallible1 and that
 a blind1 unreasoning submission to them
 no man should give4 ,as some excuse for
 presuming to doubt the decision of some
 of your lordship's predecessors1 ,i    
shall quote the following passage from  

the preface to ,mr4 ,watkin's treatise  
on ,conveyancing1 allowed to be a       
master-piece of legal sagacity and      
method4 ',i believe1' writes that       
gentleman1 'it will be found1 on        
examination1 that an implicit submission
 to the assertions of our predecessors1 
whatever station those predecessors may 
have held1 has been one of the most     
certain sources of error1 ,perhaps there
 is nothing which has so much shackled  
the human intellect1 nothing which has  
so greatly promoted whatever is         
tyrannic1 preposterous1 and absurd1     
nothing perhaps which has so much       
degraded the species in the scale of    
being as the implicit submission to     
individual dicta4' ,and he then goes on 
in vigorous terms to reprobate the      
practice of allowing 'authority to      
shoulder out common sense1 or adhering  
to precedent in defiance of principle4' 
,upon the principle contained in this   
passage ,i shall act1 in claiming the   
attention of your lordship1 and you1    

gentlemen of the jury1 whilst ,i examine
 the authorities for the doctrine which 
brings the offence with which ,i am     
charged within the jurisdiction of the  
temporal courts4 ,your lordship will1   
perhaps1 refer to these books4  ,mr4    
,justice ,erskine1 ,no need of that4 ,if
 it is not an offence at common law1    
this indictment is worth nothing4 ,you  
can take it before the fifteen judges on
 a writ of error4 ,i sit here1 not to   
correct the law1 but merely to          
administer it499       99 ,i have been  
told by a legal friend of great         
experience1      that at this point ,i  
might have taken the judge at his word1 
and have carried the case before the    
judges for decision2      but ,i was    
unacquainted with the forms of law in   
such cases1      and ,i moreover        
distrusted the judge4  ,mr4 ,holyoake   
resumed4 ,in the fourth volume of       
',blackstone's ,commentaries1' p4 #ei1  
in speaking of offences against ,god and
 religion1 that writer says1 ',the      

fourth species of offences1 therefore1  
more immediately against ,god and       
religion1 is that of blasphemy against  
the ,almighty1 by denying his being or  
providence1 or by contumelious          
reproaches of our saviour1 ,christ4     
,whither also may be referred all       
profane scoffing at the holy scripture1 
or exposing it to contempt and ridicule4
 ,these are offences punishable at      
common law by fine and imprisonment1 or 
other infamous corporal punishment2 for 
,christianity is part of the laws of    
,england4' ,blackstone quotes1 in       
support of the first species1 a volume  
of ',ventris' ,reports1' p4 #bih2 and   
the second from the second volume of    
',strange's ,reports1' p4 #hcd4 ,mr4    
,christian1 the commentator upon        
,blackstone1 adds1 in a note1 a passage 
from the ',year ,book' 7#cd ,henry      
,,vi471 folio #dc4  ,the earliest case  
is that from the year book1 in the #cdth
 year of ,henry ,,vi4 7#adeh74 ,mr4     
,christian quotes from it this          

passage--',scripture est common ley1 sur
 quel toutes manieres de leis sont      
fondes' 7i4e41 ,scripture is common law1
 upon which all descriptions of laws are
 founded74 ,were this quotation correct1
 and did the word scripture here mean   
'holy scripture1' or what is generally  
understood by the ,bible1 then ,i admit 
this passage would be a good foundation 
to build up ,mr4 ,judge ,blackstone's   
law4 ,but it is no such thing4 ,the case
 in the year book is a case of quare    
impedit1 and1 in the course of the      
argument the question arose whether1 in 
a matter of induction to a benefice by  
the ordinary 7i4e41 the bishop7 the     
common law would take notice of1 or be  
bound by1 the law or practices of the   
church4 ,where-4 upon1 ,chief ,justice  
,prisot says--',to such laws1 which they
 of the holy church have in ancient     
writing1 it becomes us to give credence1
 for such is common law1 upon which all 
descriptions of laws are founded4 ,and  
therefore1 sir1 we are obliged to       

recognise their law of the holy         
church--likewise they are obliged to    
recognise our law4 ,and1 sir1 if it     
appears to us now that the bishop has   
done as an ordinary should do in such a 
case1 then we ought to judge it good--if
 otherwise1 bad4'  ,in this passage1    
then1 there is not one word about       
scripture in the sense of 'holy         
scripture4' ,judge ,prisot says1 ',to   
such laws as the church has in ancien   
scripture 7t4 e4#i ancient writing7 we  
ought to give credence4' ,and what does 
he mean by 'laws which the church has in
 ancient writing8' not any laws that are
 to be found in the ,bible1 but the     
canon or ecclesiastical laws by which   
the temporal concerns of the church are 
guided4 ,and the reason he uses the     
phrase 'ancien scripture1' or ancient   
writing1 is that the laws were not then 
printed2 the only record of them was in 
writing4 ,printing had not been         
introduced into ,england1 and was only  
just discovered on the continent1 the   

laws therefore of the spiritual and     
temporal courts were only to be seen in 
writing4 ,and as though there should be 
no doubt as to his meaning1 he goes on  
to say1 ',and as we are obliged to      
recognise their laws 7that is the       
ecclesiastical laws1 or laws of the     
spiritual courts71 so they are obliged  
to recognise our laws 7that is1 the laws
 of the temporal courts74' ,it must     
therefore be evident that this quotation
 of ,mr4 ,christian is a perversion or  
mistake1 a judicial forgery or a        
judicial blunder1 and in either case its
 authority is of no value4 ,it must be  
dismissed altogether from our minds in  
considering what the law is upon this   
point--that is1 whether ,christianity is
 or is not a part and parcel of the law 
of ,england4 ,unfortunately1 however1 we
 shall find that this case is actually  
made the substratum of the law4 ,in     
proving1 therefore1 that it cannot      
warrant such a law1 surely ,i prove that
 at common law1 at least to speak       

against ,christianity1 is not an        
offence4  ,the next case is that in     
,ventris' ,report1 vol4 #a1 p4 #bic4 ,it
 is called ,taylor's case1 and ,chief   
,justice ,hale certainly declares       
explicitly in this case1 'that          
,christianity is parcel of the laws of  
,england4' ,but he cites no authority   
whatever4  ,in the case analysed from   
the year book1 it is expressly said1    
that the common law is to be found in   
'ancient writings1' and the unsupported 
dictum of a judge in the middle of the  
seventeenth century cannot be construed 
as a part of the ancient writings of the
 common law4 ,either the law already    
existed or it did not4 ,if it did1 the  
question is--where is it8 ,if it did    
not1 ,chief ,justice ,hale could not    
then make it for the first time2 and    
this case in ,ventris' cannot be said to
 lay down the law4 ,the case in the     
second volume of ,strange is the ,king  
v4 ,woolston4 ,the defendant had been   
convicted of writing four blasphemous   

discourses against the divinity and     
character of ,christ2 and upon          
attempting to move in arrest of         
judgment1 the court declared they would 
not suffer it to be debated whether to  
write against ,christianity in general  
was an offence punishable in the        
temporal courts of common law4 ,and they
 cited ,taylor's case1 which has been   
shown to be an insufficient authority1  
or rather no authority at all1 and the  
,king v4 ,hale1 in the same volume of   
,strange1 p4 #daf1 but which was an     
indictment under the statute 7#i  #aj   
,wm4 ,,hi47 for speaking against the    
,trinity1 and therefore cannot in any   
way support the common law doctrine4    
,the first person who called attention  
to the utter want of authority in the   
common law for the dictum 'that         
,christianity was part of the common    
law1' was ,jefferson1 the second        
president of ,america--himself a        
profound lawyer1 and to his references  
,i am indebted for the foregoing        

authorities1 which1 however1 have been  
carefully verified4 ,mr4 ,jefferson1 in 
a letter to ,major ,cart-wright1 to be  
found in vol4 ii41 p4 #bgb1 of his      
',memoirs1' exposes the mode in which   
this law was created4 ,alluding to the  
case of ,prisot1 he says1 ',finch in his
 first book1 c4 #c1 is the first who    
afterwards quotes this case4 ,he        
misstates it thus3 ,to such laws of the 
church as have warrant in holy          
scripture1 our law giveth credence1 and 
cites ,prisot1 mistranslating ancien    
scripture into holy scripture4 ,this was
 in #afac1 a century and a half after   
the dictum of ,prisot4 ,wingate1 in     
#afeh1 erects this false translation    
into a maxim of the common law1 copying 
the words of ,finch1 but citing ,prisot4
 ,shephard1 title ,religion1 in #afge1  
copies the same mistranslation1 quoting 
the year book1 finch1 and ,wingate4     
,hale expresses it in these words1      
,christianity is parcel of the laws of  
,england1 but quotes no authority4      

,wood1 #dji1 ventures still to vary the 
phrase1 and says1 that all blasphemy and
 prophaneness are offences by the common
 law1 and ,blackstone repeats the words 
of ,hale4' ,in the case of the the ,king
 v4 ,carlile1 decided since ,mr4        
,jefferson wrote this letter1 there was 
no argument as to the common law4 ,the  
question was as to whether the statute  
7#i  #aj ,wm4 ,,iii47 had superseded the
 common law4 ,but the common law itself 
was not called in question1 which ,i    
submit it should be1 and by a wise      
example superseded4  ,but let us see    
what ,christianity is according to      
common law8 ,we may remark--  #a4 ,its  
inconsistency4--,it calls blasphemy the 
greatest crime man can commit4 ,yet in  
the case of ,hetherington v4 ,moxon1 it 
permits the respectable blasphemer to go
 free4 ,blasphemy in guinea volumes it  
allows1 but exhibits the holiest horror 
at it when in penny pamphlets4  #b4 ,its
 barbarity1 as in ,peter ,annet's       
case4--,in ,michaelmas term1 ,m4 #c4 ,g4

 #c4 ,peter ,annet was convicted on an  
information for writing 'a most         
blasphemous libel1' in weekly papers    
called the ,free ,inquirer1 to which he 
pleaded guilty2 in consideration of     
which1 and of his poverty1 of his having
 confessed his errors in an affidavit1  
and of his being #gd years old1 and some
 symptoms of wildness that appeared on  
his inspection in court1 the court      
declared they had mitigated his         
punishment to the following3 ,to be     
imprisoned in ,newgate for one month2 to
 stand twice in the pillory with a paper
 on his forehead1 inscribed ,blasphemy2 
to be sent to the ,house of ,correction 
to hard labour for a year2 to pay a fine
 of #fs4 #h;d41 and to find security    
himself in ,l#ajj1 and two sureties in  
,l#ej each for his good behaviour during
 life499  #c4 ,its capriciousness4--,the
 common law before the time of ,henry   
,,viii4 was one thing1 but afterwards it
 was another4 ,the language which was   
blasphemy at the first period1 was not  

so in the other4 ,those expressions     
which insulted ,god before ,henry the   
,eighth was born1 did not insult him    
afterwards4 ,henry the ,eighth's opinion
 made the difference4 ,lord             
,commissioner ,white-locke 7#e ,howell's
 ,state ,trials1 p4 #hbf71 in ,debate   
whether ,james ,nayler the quaker should
 suffer death1 remarked1 ',i remember a 
case in our book ,h4 #g1 where the      
bishop committed one to prison for a    
heretic1 and the heresy was denying that
 tythes were due to the parson4 ,this at
 that time was a very great heresy4'    
#d4 ,its disregard of equal justice4--,a
 ,british subject would be punished for 
firing into a ,turkish vessel2 but he is
 not punishable for attacking the       
captain and sailors with ,bibles and    
tracts1 which1 if they read and believe1
 will make them apostates from the faith
 of ,mahomet1 and blasphemers of the    
,koran4 ,while on terms of amity with   
the ,sublime ,porte1 the laws of        
,england restrain us from despoiling    

them of their property1 but not from    
despoiling them of their religion49999  
99 ,blackstone's ,reports1 p4 #cje4     
9999 ,vide ,freethinker's ,information  
for the ,people4  #e4 ,it debases       
religion as best set forth4--',religion 
7says ,miss ,martineau7 is1 in its      
widest sense1 the tendency of human     
nature to the infinite2 and its         
principle is manifested in the pursuit  
of perfection in any direction whatever4
 ,it is in this widest sense that some  
speculative atheists have been religious
 men2 religious in their efforts after  
self-perfection2 though unable to       
personify their conception of the       
infinite4 ,in a somewhat narrower sense1
 religion is the relation which the     
highest human sentiments bear towards an
 infinitely perfect being4 ,there can be
 no further narrowing than this4 ,any   
account of religion which restricts it  
within the boundaries of any system1    
which connects it with any mode of      
belief1 which implicates it with hope of

 reward1 or fear of punishment1 is low  
and injurious1 and debases religion into
 superstition4' ,how much more is       
religion degraded that is made the      
subject of reward and punishment here8  
,thus speaks the common law upon these  
points1 and thus1 as part of the common 
law1 speaks ,christianity4 ,will you1 by
 a verdict of guilty this day1 send     
forth to the world this card of         
credentials of the religion of ,jesus8  
,the intention of a libel constitutes   
its criminality4 ,it is for you1        
gentlemen1 to say whether ,i knowingly1 
wickedly1 and maliciously offended the  
law8 ,malice is necessary to a          
libel--conscientious words are          
allowable1 ',contumely and contempt are 
what no establishment can tolerate3 but 
on the other hand it would not be proper
 to lay any restraint upon rational and 
dispassionate discussions of the        
rectitude and propriety of the          
established mode of worship4' #d ,bla4  
,com4 #ea2 #a ,pmp4 #bai4 ,and ,mr4     

,starkie1 on the subject1 says 'that it 
may not be going too far from the       
principles and decisions1 that no author
 or preacher who fairly and             
conscientiously promulgates the opinions
 with whose truth he is impressed for   
the benefit of others1 is for so doing  
amenable as a criminal1 that a malicious
 and mischievous intention is in such   
case the broad boundary between right   
and wrong2 and that if it can be        
collected from the offensive levity with
 which so serious a subject is treated1 
or from other circumstances1 that the   
act of the party was malicious1 then1   
since the law has no means of           
distinguishing between different degrees
 of evil tendency1 if the matter        
published contain any such tendency1 the
 publisher becomes amenable to          
justice4'99       99 ,starkie on ,libel1
 pp4 #dif-g4  ,as to the duty of the    
jury1 ,i have ,lord ,chief ,justice     
,abbott's opinion1 in his charge to the 
jury in summing up the evidence against 

,mr4 ,joseph ,russell at the ,warwick   
,summer ,assizes1 on ,friday1 ,august   
#ac1 #ahai1 for a political libel1 being
 ,mr4 ,hone's ',parody on the litany4'  
,mr4 ,russell argued that as ,hone had  
been acquitted for publishing it1 he    
also ought to be4 ',no one1' says his   
lordship1 'is more inclined than myself 
to speak reverently of the decision of  
juries4 ,but1 gentlemen1 you cannot1    
under the sanction of an oath1 take the 
verdict of those juries either directly 
or indirectly as your guide in the      
verdict you are called upon to give in  
this case4 ,those juries1 no doubt1     
returned their verdicts honestly and    
conscientiously according to the        
evidence that was layed before them4    
,what that evidence was you can know    
nothing of4 ,you are to try the question
 by your own consciences and by your own
 reason4 ,they might have been right in 
their decision1 and you should be       
careful that you are right in yours4'   
,after this1 you will see it is clear   

that though a jury had before found a   
person guilty of the offence ,i am      
charged with1 it will be no             
justification of your doing so too4     
,here ,mr4 ,holyoake1 perceiving that he
 would be heard fairly1 and that no     
attempts to put him down were practised1
 laid aside a handful of notes1 and     
said3--  ,i have to thank your lordship1
 and you1 gentlemen of the jury1 for the
 courtesy and attention with which ,i   
have been heard4 ,gentlemen1 if ,i have 
occupied you long you will find my      
apology in the circumstance that your   
verdict against me will occupy me       
longer4 ,i could wish that justice to me
 and your convenience had permitted     
brevity4 ,the length of my defence has  
originated with the charge against me1  
and not with myself4  ,it is said1 that 
when ,southey was asked if he were not  
ashamed of having written ,wat ,tyler1  
he answered1 no more ashamed than ,i am 
of having been young4 ,meaning1 any man 
may err in youth4 ,so ,i erred in being 

religious in my early days4 ,if ,i am   
not religious now1 deem me not criminal4
 ,religion never did me a service1 how  
then should ,i love it8 ,but it assailed
 my youth with gloomy dogmas1 now it    
assails my liberty4  ,gentlemen1 if     
during my address to you ,i have        
offended by the frankness of my avowals1
 it has not proceeded from a disregard  
of your feelings1 but from the belief   
that1 as men1 you would prefer          
independence to servility of speech4    
,of the nature of the charge against me 
,i add no further word4 ,my only crime  
has been the discharge of what ,i       
considered a duty4 ,for my difference in
 opinion with you upon the question of  
,deity1 ,i offer no apology4 ,i have    
made no contract to think as you do1 and
 ,i owe you no obligation to do it4 ,if 
,i commanded you to abjure your belief1 
you would disregard it as impertinence1 
and if you punish me for not adjuring   
mine1 how will you reconcile it with    
'doing as you would wish to be done     

unto8'  ,had ,i said1 that there is no  
,god1 still ,i should not deserve the   
penalties of the law4 ,if ,i point to   
the wrong ,i see in this ,christian     
country1 and ask1 is this ,christianity8
 you would reply1 ',no2 what you refer  
to results from men who live without    
,god in the world4' ,then1 gentlemen1   
would you punish me for simply saying   
that which other men1 unpunished1 are   
every day doing8  ,if ,i have said that 
religious revenues should be reduced one
 half1 ,i spoke only the dictates of    
humanity at this season of national     
suffering4 ,surely it is not blasphemous
 to argue that human misery should be   
alleviated at the expense of spiritual  
pride4  ,i ask not equal rights with    
yourselves4 ,you1 as ,christians1 can   
imprison those who differ from you4 ,i  
do not offend your pride by asking to be
 admitted your equals here4 ,i desire   
not such privileges4 ,i claim merely the
 right to speak my convictions2 to show 
a man the right path when ,i think he   

takes the wrong one4  ,it is a          
melancholy maxim in these courts of law1
 that the greater the truth the greater 
the libel2 and so it would be with me   
this day could ,i demonstrate to you    
that there is no ,deity4 ,the more      
correct ,i am the severer would be my   
punishment1 because the law regards the 
belief in a ,god to be the foundation of
 obedience among men4 ,but ,i trust ,i  
have convinced you that my views of this
 question are compatible with the       
practice of all our duties to our       
fellow-men1 borne out by eminent        
authority and long experience4  ,setting
 aside the reprobation of persecution by
 ,middleton1 by ,clarke1 by ,latimer1   
and other divines ,i have quoted2       
,leslie1 ,reid1 and ,bulwer have        
contended that the objections of the    
sceptic merely strengthen the fabric of 
piety they pretend to assail4           
,gentlemen1 which is to be believed1    
divines and philosophers1 or the common 
law8 ,these persons speak as though they

 believed ,christianity to be true2 the 
common law punishes as though it knew it
 to be false4  ,if the state religion be
 true1 my opinion can never overcome it2
 and by convicting me you publish your  
consciousness of error in the cause you 
are placed there to defend as truth4 ,if
 ,god be truth you libel him and his    
power1 and publish the omnipotence of   
error4  ,when in gaol1 ,i one day opened
 the rules drawn up by the judges4 ,the 
#afgth opens thus3 ',no prisoner shall  
lie4' ,now1 gentlemen1 how is a man to  
act under these circumstances in which  
,i am placed8 ,if you find me guilty    
upon the indictment before you1 my case 
stands in this manner--if ,i do not lie 
you imprison me1 and if ,i do you punish
 me4 ,turning back to the morality of   
ancient days1 and meditating with       
delight on their noble sincerity and    
love of truth1 am ,i to count it a      
misfortune to live in modern times and  
among a ,christian people8  ,in your    
churches1 as ,i have read to you1 you   

implore that truth and justice may      
descend among men1 and3 the supplication
 is a noble one4 ,gentlemen1 will you   
pray for truth in your churches and     
brand it in your courts8  ,the          
atmosphere of your gaols as little      
assimilates with my taste as their      
punishments will accord with my         
constitution1 ,i seek not these things1 
,i assure you1 but when they lie in the 
path of duty ,i trust ,i shall ever     
prefer them to a dereliction from it4   
,but1 gentlemen1 supposing that they are
 my sentiments that you are requested to
 punish2 you should first do yourselves 
the justice to reflect what has been    
said about them and insinuated in this  
court4 ,learned divines1 and sage       
writers on atheism1 agree that it is too
 absurd to need refutation--too barren  
to satisfy1 too monstrous to attract1   
too fearful to allure1 too dumb to      
speak1 and too deathly not to appal its 
own votaries4 ,it is styled too grave to
 entertain youth1 and too devoid of     

consolation for the trembling wants of  
age--too abstract for the comprehension 
of the ignorant1 and too unreasonable to
 gain the admiration of the intelligent4
 ,that it is alarming to the timid1 and 
disquieting to the brave-that it        
negatives everything1 and sets up       
nothing1 and is so purely speculative   
that it can never have a practical      
bearing on the business of life4        
,gentlemen1 will you disturb the harmony
 of these conclusions by a verdict      
against me1 and attack that which never 
existed1 and place upon the grave       
records of this court a slaying of the  
self-slain8 ,will you thus draw         
attention to a subject you perhaps think
 had better be forgotten1 and create a  
conviction that it must be a greatly    
important one1 since you erect it into  
public notice by directing the thunders 
of the law at young and comparatively   
inexperienced believer in its principle8
  ,would you test my opinions by my     
emotions on the bed of death8 ,let me   

assure you1 that if men can expect to   
die in peace who can send their fellow  
men to a gaol because of honest         
difference of opinion1 ,i have nothing  
to fear4  ,i am told ,i may hold        
opinions1 but must keep them to         
myself--which means1 ,i may know and    
feel what is right1 but must never do   
it4 ,i must see my fellow-men in error1 
but never put them right4 ,must live    
every day below the standard of right my
 sense of duty and conscience sets up1  
and all my life long 'prove all things' 
and never 'hold fast to the good4'  ,the
 indictment charges me with having      
'wickedly1 maliciously1 and with evil   
design1' against the peace of the       
,queen1 uttered certain words4 ,what    
shadow of evidence has been adduced to  
substantiate this extravagant charge8   
,will you suffer this court to proclaim 
the sacred nature of an oath1 and openly
 violate it in the same hour and under  
the same roof8 ,i might ask in the      
spirit of that ,christianity you sit    

there to administer1 how do you propose 
to answer to your ,god in that day when 
the secrets of all hearts are to be     
opened1 when all dissembling is to be   
exposed1 and all perjury punished2 how  
do you pro-pose to answer for having    
invoked the name of ,god in this        
assembly only to disregard it1 on the   
poor plea of precedent--that others have
 done so before8 ,for1 gentlemen1 there 
is nothing else that even the subtlest  
sophistry can conjure up to justify you4
 ,but ,i best prefer appealing to you as
 honest men1 in the spirit of my own    
reasoning1 and thinking2 as men with an 
eye to the improvement of mankind1 who  
would break the unjust shackles that    
bind them1 who would discard prejudice  
in order to be just1 who will not       
condemn me because ,i am not rich1 and  
who will listen to humanity rather than 
to bigotry1 and respect truthfulness    
wherever you may find it4 ,i believe    
that in every honest heart there is a   
sense of rectitude that rises superior  

to creeds1 that respects all virtue and 
protects all truth1 that asks for no    
names and seeks no precedents before    
resolving to do rightly1 that fears no  
man's frowns1 and dares to be just      
without custom's permit4 ,to this       
feeling1 gentlemen1 only do ,i appeal1  
and by its verdict ,i am willing to     
abide4  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine3         
,gentlemen of the jury1 although the    
lengthened address of the defendant has 
demanded from you so long endurance1 in 
this vitiated atmosphere1 ,i still trust
 we shall have enough of power left to  
direct our minds to the parts of this   
case which are important4 ,the greater  
part of the time has been wasted on     
subjects with which you have nothing to 
do4 ,we are not sitting here as a       
deliberative assembly to consider       
whether in respect of such cases as this
 it is politic or wise to imprison for  
opinions--whether men ought to be       
punished for uttering such              
sentiments--and ,i shall have nothing to

 say to you on that point4 ,we have to  
decide on the law as we find it4 ,i     
shall make no law--the judges made no   
law1 but have handed it down from the   
earliest ages4 ,i should have no more   
power to alter this than to say the     
eldest son is not the heir of his       
father4 ,allusion has been made to some 
expressions of mine1 when in the course 
of my duty ,i directed the attention of 
the grand jury to these cases4          
,certainly the printed report was highly
 incorrect4 ,i said nothing to prejudice
 them4 ,inasmuch as this offence        
directly tended to take away that       
foundation on which real morality can   
alone be safely based1 ,i told them what
 ,i feel1 that without religion there is
 no morality4 ,i recommended that that  
foundation may be made by early         
education and habits of thought1 but in 
so doing ,i did not mean to prejudge1   
nor do ,i seem to have been considered  
as doing so1 ,i am not going to lay down
 as law that no man has a right to      

entertain opinions opposed to the       
religion of the state1 nor to express   
them4 ,man is only responsible for his  
opinions to ,god1 because ,god only can 
judge of his motives1 and we arrogate   
his duties if we judge of men's         
sentiments4 ,if men will entertain      
sentiments opposed to the religion of   
the state we require that they shall    
express them reverently1 and            
philosophers who have discussed this    
subject all agree that this is right    
,mr4 ,archdeacon ,paley has stated this 
in language so plain1 far better than   
any words ,i could supply myself4       
',serious arguments are fair on all     
sides4 ,christianity is but ill-defended
 by refusing audience or toleration to  
the objections of unbelievers4 ,but     
whilst we would have freedom of inquiry 
restrained by no laws but those of      
decency1 we are entitled to demand1 on  
behalf of a religion which holds forth  
to mankind assurances of immortality1   
that its credit be assailed by no other 

weapons than those of sober discussion  
and legitimate reasoning4' ,our law has 
adopted that as its rule1 and men are   
not permitted to make use of indecent   
language in reference to ,god and the   
,christian religion1 without rendering  
themselves liable to punishment4 ,you   
have had a great number of books read to
 you1 arguing whether it was politic to 
prosecute in such cases4 ,one of the    
sentiments was a dignitary's reply1 ',i 
will answer it4' ,that points out the   
difference in these cases4  ,sober      
argument you may answer1 but indecent   
reviling you cannot1 and therefore the  
law steps in and punishes it4 ,you have 
been told you have to consider what is  
blasphemy4 ,he asked the witness what he
 considered blasphemy1 and he gave him a
 very sensible answer4 ,what you have to
 try is1 whether the defendant wickedly 
and devisedly did intend to bring the   
,christian religion into contempt among 
the people1 by uttering words of and    
concerning ,almighty ,god1 the holy     

,scriptures1 and the ,christian         
religion4 ,the charge is1 that he       
uttered these words with the intention  
of bringing ,almighty ,god1 the         
,christian religion1 and the holy       
,scriptures1 into contempt4 ,you are not
 called upon to say whether in your     
judgment the opinions of the defendant  
are right or wrong--whether it is right 
or wrong that words like these should be
 punished1 but whether he uttered these 
words with the intent charged in the    
indictment4 ,these words were proved by 
a witness who admits that others were   
used1 that they did not follow          
consecutively1 and that other words were
 interspersed4 ,it is right that you    
should have the whole set before you1   
for a man is not to be judged for what  
is partly set before you1 and therefore 
it was necessary you should have the    
whole of what was said4 ,the way in     
which the witness related the statements
 made by defendant was this3 ,he said he
 had been lecturing on ',home           

,colonisation1 ,emigration1 and         
,poor-,laws superseded4' ,after the     
lecture had been closed1 some man whose 
name he did not then know1 said the     
lecturer had been speaking of our duty  
to our fellow-men1 but he had not spoken
 of our duty to our ,god1 and it is     
important that you should notice that   
the words were not the subject of the   
lecture1 but uttered in answer to a     
question put to him4 ,there is no       
evidence that he intended to have said  
anything--there is no evidence that this
 person is a friend of the other person1
 or that this question was asked so as  
to give him an opportunity of uttering  
these sentiments199 ,if that had been   
the case it would have made it worse    
than if he had introduced it4 ,this     
challenge having been made by this      
person1 whoever it was1 the defendant   
said--',i am of no religion at all2 ,i  
do not believe in such a thing as a     
,god4' ,there is nothing in the         
introduction of the word 'thing' to show

 that he intended to-treat the subject  
with levity and contempt4 ,you might    
take it that he said he did not believe 
there is such a being as a ,god4        
99 ,the artifice which ,mr4 ,justice    
,erskine here suggested to      the jury
 never entered into my imagination4 ,the
 evidence      could not have given the 
jury any such idea1 and ,i was          
pained and astonished to hear the judge 
employ it4  ,the witness went on3 ',he  
said the people of this country are too 
poor to have any religion1 he would     
serve the ,deity as the government did  
the subaltern officers--place him on    
half-pay2 ,i was near the door2 you said
 the reason was the expense of religion4
 ,and then he was asked as to his       
opinion of blasphemy4 ,he is then       
cross-examined as to his knowledge of   
some report made by another person4 ,you
 did not lay any emphasis on the word   
thing2 you said the word in the ordinary
 tone of voice4' ,there is something    
which defendant has alleged himself to  

have stated99 which gives a stronger    
sting than that which was given by the  
witness--',i flee the ,bible as a       
viper4' ,the question is whether these  
words were uttered with the intention of
 bringing ,god and the ,christian       
religion into contempt4 ,then the charge
 is made out1 for ,i tell you that it is
 an offence at common law4 ,if it is not
 an offence1 the indictment is not worth
 the parchment it is written upon--if   
there is no such authority as that which
 ,i have laid down4 ,any man who treats 
with contempt the ,christian religion1  
is guilty of an indictable misdemeanour4
 ,you have to consider the language and 
a passage read to you from a charge of a
 learned judge4 ',it may not be going   
too far to state1 that no author or     
preacher is forbidden stating his       
opinions sincerely4 ,by maliciously is  
not meant malice against any particular 
individual1 but a mischievous intent4   
,this is the criterion1 and it is a fair
 criterion1 if it can be collected from 

the offensive levity in which the       
subject is treated1 if the matter placed
 in the indictment contains any such    
tendency4' ,if the words had appeared in
 the course of a written paper you would
 have entertained no doubt that the     
person who had uttered these words had  
uttered them with levity4 ,the only     
thing in his favour is1 that it was not 
a written answer4 ,the solution given by
 the defendant is1 that although his    
opinions are unhappily such that he has 
no belief in a ,god1 he had no intention
 of bringing religion into contempt4 ,he
 went on to state that he considered it 
the duty of the clergymen of the        
establishment to have reduced their     
incomes one-half4 ,if he had meant this1
 he ought to have made use of other     
language4 ,you will dismiss from your   
minds all statements in newspapers1 or  
other statements made out of court1 and 
consider it in reference to the         
evidence4 ,if you are convinced that he 
uttered it with levity1 for the purpose 

of treating with contempt the majesty of
 ,almighty ,god he is guilty of the     
offence4 ,if you think he made use of   
these words in the heat of argument     
without any such intent1 you will give  
him the benefit of the doubt4 ,if you   
are convinced that he did it with that  
object you must find him guilty1 despite
 of all that has been addressed to you4 
,if you entertain a reasonable doubt of 
his intention1 you will give him the    
benefit of it4       99 ,in the report  
of my original speech to ,maitland1     
which ,i      read to the court from the
 ,oracle4  ,the jury1 after a very brief
 deliberation1 returned a verdict of    
,guilty4  ,one of the jury was a ,deist1
 a professed friend of free speech1 and 
who had said that he never could convict
 me1 but he wanted courage when the hour
 of the verdict came1 and gave in       
against me4 ,for myself1 ,i never for a 
moment expected an acquittal4 ,during   
the few moments of the jury's           
consultation1 ,i took my watch from my  

neck and gave it1 with my keys1 to my   
friend1 ,mr4 ,knight ,hunt4 ,my papers  
,i consigned to my friend ,mr4 ,w4 ,b4  
,smith1 as for all ,i knew they might   
the next moment become the property of  
the court by virtue of the sentence4    
,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,george ,jacob  
,holyoake1 if you had been convicted as 
the author of that paper which ,adams   
has been convicted of publishing1 my    
sentence must have been very severe4    
,but1 although the name is the same1    
there is no evidence of it499 ,you have 
been convicted of uttering language1 and
 although yom have been adducing long   
arguments to show the impolicy of these 
prosecutions1 you are convicted of      
having uttered these words with improper
 levity4 ,the arm of the law is not     
stretched out to protect the character  
of the ,almighty2 we do not assume to be
 the protectors of our ,god1 but to     
protect the people from such indecent   
language4 ,and if these words had been  
written for deliberate circulation1 ,i  

should have passed on you a severer     
sentence4 ,you uttered them in          
consequence of a question--,i have no   
evidence that this question was put to  
draw out these words4 ,proceeding on the
 evidence that has been given1 trusting 
that these words have been uttered in   
the heat of the moment1 ,i shall think  
it sufficient to sentence you to be     
imprisoned in the ,common ,gaol for ,six
 calendar months4       99 ,this is     
another of those unwarranted            
suppositions in which      the judge    
ought not to have indulged4 ',that      
paper' was      written by my friend    
,mr4 ,chilton1 ,editor of the ,oracle in
 my      absence1 and signed with his   
initials4 ,the judge might have         
known that ,i was in ,gloucester ,gaol  
when it was written and      published4 
,i should have stopped the judge and    
corrected      him1 but ,i feared by    
seeming to separate myself from ,adams1 
to be thought capable of saving myself  
at his expense1 or      exposing him to 

new rigour4  ,mr4 ,holyoake4 ,my lord1  
am ,i to be classed with thieves and    
felons8  ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine4 ,no2   
thieves and felons are sentenced to the 
,penitentiary1 you to the ,common ,gaol4
  ,the court adjourned at ten o'clock4  
,what was advanced by the counsel and   
the judge has been rendered in full in  
the foregoing report1 but ,i have       
contented myself with an abstract of    
what ,i urged myself4 ,the ,times said  
,i quoted from more than thirty authors1
 which is very likely2 but it was not   
because ,i was not sensible of the good 
taste of brevity that ,i occupied the   
bench so long4 ,i was standing that day 
in court fourteen hours1 and1 including 
the cross examinations1 ,i was speaking 
more than eleven hours4 ,i prepared     
notes to last me two days2 and after the
 first six hours1 my voice1 usually     
shrill and weak1 became full and        
somewhat sonorous4 ,i could have spoken 
all night1 and ,i should have done it   
had the judge attempted to put me down4 

,but ,i willingly acknowledge that1 on  
the whole1 the conduct of the judge was 
fair to me1 and patient to a degree that
 inspired me with great respect for the 
dignity of the bench1 and ,i dedicated  
my ',short and ,easy ,method with the   
,saints' to ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine1 as  
an actual expression of my respect4 ,the
 governor of the gaol one day said to   
me1 that ,i ought not to regret six     
months' imprisonment after occupying the
 court and public so many hours4 ,i did 
not regret it4 ,indeed1 ,i more deserved
 the sentence for the length of my      
defence than for the words for which ,i 
was indicted4 ,but it was the menace of 
the magistrates 7before recounted7 that 
,i should not be heard1 that did me the 
harm1 and exposed me to the imputation  
of wanting good sense1 which is a worse 
imputation than that of wanting         
orthodoxy4 ,this came of inexperience in
 imprisonment4 ,the menaces of          
magistrates will not so mislead me      
another time4  ,when ,i now read the    

notices of these proceedings which ,i   
furnished to the ,oracle at the time1 ,i
 smile at the juvenility of comment in  
which ,i indulged4 ,when                
similarly-worded reports reach me for   
the ,reasoner1 my practice is to extract
 the simple facts--and1 of course1 the  
writers remonstrate with me2 but how    
grateful should ,i be now if some one   
had done the same by me then4 ,the      
principle on which we proceeded with our
 ,oracle was that every man should      
express himself in his own words and in 
his own way1 and we thought it a crime  
against freedom to distinguish between  
weak comment and the report of essential
 facts1 or the expression of vital      
principle4 ,the report of the           
proceedings rendered in these pages is  
given in some measure upon the rule of  
discrimination which ,i have described4 
,but1 in this1 ,i have been impartial to
 others1 and have omitted many things on
 the part of my opponents which ,i      
believe they would not repeat1 and which

 ,i1 therefore1 have no wish to         
perpetuate4 ,the remaining variations   
between this report and that which      
formerly appeared will be found to be   
partly on the side of greater accuracy  
in some respects1 and more fulness in   
others4 ,the original report presented  
most of the quotations1 calling them a  
string of pearls1 but left in a very    
unravelled state the string which tied  
them--and hence they read like abrupt   
interpolations4 ,i have now given the   
connecting observations1 the spirit of  
the extracts1 and1 in cases where the   
extracts have not since that time grown 
familiar to the public ear1 ,i have     
given them also4  ,the influence of my  
defence upon the public at ,gloucester  
and ,cheltenham1 notwithstanding the    
difficulties under which ,i laboured1   
was in my favour beyond my expectation4 
,the newspapers stated that the court   
and jury were attentive throughout1 and 
the numbers who thronged the court      
behaved in the most decorous manner1    

testifying their interest in the        
proceedings by a uniform silence1       
manifesting neither approbation nor     
disapprobation4' ,several newspapers    
gave nine or ten columns of the         
proceedings1 which was valuable         
propagandism4 ,and it is due to the     
,cheltenham ,examiner 7whose parallel   
between me and ,francis the reader will 
not have forgotten71 to state that it   
gave an effective rendering of my       
defence1 and added these compensatory   
words to its report3--',the defendant   
spoke throughout in a temperate manner1 
and his defence appeared to tell in his 
favour1 so far as regarded the honesty  
of his motives4'  ,let me say here that 
my grateful acknowledgments are due to  
the editor of the ,cheltenham ,free     
,press4 ,that paper reported whatever   
concerned my liberty1 my conscience1 or 
my character4 ,it risked much in        
defending1 alone among its local        
contemporaries1 the freedom of speech   
violated in my person4 ,it opened its   

columns to ,goodwyn ,barmby's           
proclamations1 to ,catherine ,barmby's  
letters1 to ,richard ,carlile's         
defences1 and to the numerous           
communications of my friends on my      
behalf4  ,my acknowledgments are also   
due to the ,weekly ,dispatch4 ,on my    
visiting ,london ',publicola1' then     
,captain ,williams1 invited me to call  
upon him1 and inform him of my position 
with respect to the pending trial2 and  
his able ,letters to ,justice ,erg-kine1
 after my conviction1 produced great    
uneasiness at the gaol1 and each number 
of the ,dispatch was awaited for some   
weeks by the authorities around me1 as  
,i learned from the gaolers1 with       
anxiety4  ,my defence1 considered as a  
defence of the wide and momentous       
question of atheism1 was crude enough4  
,no one can be more sensible of that    
than ,i am4 ,on the moral aspects of    
atheism and its relation to public      
polity ,i feared to enter1 lest in my   
own newness to the study of so large a  

subject ,i should compromise it by      
unskilfulness of statement2 ,i therefore
 confined myself to pleading that the   
right of public expression was the      
sequence of the right of private        
judgment--that the right of expression  
was consonant to the common law as well 
as to reason1 and that the right of     
expression being necessary to private   
morality1 it could not be incompatible  
with the public peace4    ,,chapter     
,,iii4 ,,after ,,the ,,sentence  ,as    
soon as the sentence was pronounced1 ,i 
was taken to the ceils under the court4 
,captain ,mason1 the governor1 said     
there was another prisoner to go down   
besides me and ,adams4 ,it was a case of
 felony4 ,he said ',would ,i go with    
him8' i replied ',i would not4' ,he then
 asked if ,i 'objected to go with       
,adams4' ,that ,i cheerfully agreed to1 
and1 handcuffed with ,adams1 ,i walked  
down to the gaol4 ,having taken nothing 
since morning but a little raspberry    
vinegar1 with which ,mr4 ,carlile       

supplied me1 ,i began to feel weak1 but 
nothing was offered me except a little  
warm water1 for which ,i asked1 and     
this1 with a very hard and bitter apple1
 constituted my supper4 ,the transition 
from the excitement of the court to the 
darkness and coolness of the night-cell1
 made me feel as if going into a well1  
and my supper not serving to compose me1
 ,i continued restless till the morning4
  ,next day ,i felt so weak that ,i     
could scarcely stand upright4 ,about    
twelve o'clock ,mr4 ,bransby ,cooper and
 the ,rev4 ,samuel ,jones came round4   
,when ,mr4 ,cooper saw me1 he said1     
',why1 ,holyoake1 ,i did not know you   
yesterday4'  ',why1 sir8'  ',you did not
 seem to be the same person you were    
before4'  ',in what respect was ,i      
different8'  ',before you were so gentle
 and submissive1 but yesterday there was
 so much hauteur about you4'  ,i        
answered1 ',here ,i had to endure your  
authority2 in court ,i had to defend my 
character and liberty4 ,it was my turn  

yesterday1 it is yours again to-day4'   
,about the middle of the first day's    
imprisonment ,i was startled by the     
sonorous voice of the street cryer1     
passing near the walls of the gaol1     
crying with a loud voice--',howitt's    
correct list of all the cast1 quit1 and 
condemned2' and specifying1 with marked 
emphasis1 far above that bestowed on two
 cases of wilful murder1 the case of    
,george ,jacob ,holyoake1 for uttering  
certain ,blasphemous words against ,god1
 and of and concerning the ,christian   
,religion4' ,the above words and        
specification are to be found in the    
said ',correct ,list1' which a turnkey  
bought for me at my request1 and which  
,i still have4 ,on the second morning   
after my sentence1 ,i was sitting by the
 7very little7 fire in the common room1 
contemplating1 with very critical air1 a
 can of somewhat indifferent gruel1     
which ,i had not the slightest          
disposition to eat1 when the prayer bell
 rung1 which did not at all improve my  

temper4 ,where the gaol was situated1 ,i
 enjoyed such a propinquity to dock     
bells1 basin bells1 cathedral bells1 and
 gaol bells1 that had ,i been inclined  
to rebel1 it would have chimed in with  
the others4 ,upon the aforesaid prayer  
bell ringing1 all my fellow-prisoners   
made a rapid escape4 ,i could not tell  
what had become of them4 ,over my head  
was a large grating1 for the convenience
 of gaolers overlooking the room4 ,down 
this grating there came a tremendous    
voice1 shouting ',holyoake6 ,holyoake6  
,holyoake6' ,the voice belonged to      
,ogden1 a man whom ,carlyle would have  
delighted to honour4 ,nature made him   
for a gaoler4 ,looking up1 ,i said      
',what do you want8'  ',did you not hear
 that bell8'  ',yes1' ,i said2 'what of 
that8'  ',all the other prisoners are   
gone to prayers4'  ',well1 let the poor 
devils go1 if they like it4'  ',i can't 
be talked to in this way1' he roared    
out1 in his surliest tones2 'you must   
go4'  ',i am afraid that is a mistake of

 yours4'  ',don't you know where you    
are8'  ',yes2 ,i'm in ,gloucester ,gaol1
 sitting over a can of very bad gruel4' 
',don't you know you are a prisoner8'   
',oh6 yes2 ,i am quite sensible of it4' 
',well1 you must do as the others do1   
and you must go to prayers4'  ',then you
 must carry me4'  ',i'll report you to  
the clergyman4'  ',give the clergyman my
 compliments1 and say ,i'm not coming to
 prayers4'  ,he stalked away with the   
air of one whose dignity was greatly    
outraged4 ,during the time of this      
colloquy prayers were suspended1 and the
 clergyman was waiting my arrival in    
order to begin4 ,as soon as prayers were
 well over1 an order came for me--',the 
clergyman wanted me4'  ',well1 ,mr4     
,holyoake1' he said1 when ,i met him1   
'how is it you did not come to prayers8'
  ,i answered1 ',you cannot expect me to
 come to prayers2 you imprison me here  
on the ground that ,i do not believe in 
a ,god1 and then you would take me to   
chapel to pray to one4 ,i cannot prevent

 your imprisoning me1 but ,i can prevent
 your making me a hypocrite1 and must4' 
',but if you attended the ordinances of 
grace1 it might lead you to believe in  
the ,christian religion4'  ',i should be
 very sorry for that4'  ',really me--how
 can you say so1 sir8'  ',because ,i    
should be very sorry to treat those who 
differ from me as you treat me4'  ',you 
do not understand us4 ,it is not you we 
persecute--it is your opinions4'  ',then
 ,i wish you would imprison my opinions1
 and not me4' ,here he turned to refresh
 himself by looking at the rules for the
 regulation of prisoners in ,gloucester 
gaol4 ,he resumed--',but you must attend
 prayers--it's the rule of the gaol4'   
',i must do what ,i must do1 ,i know2   
but1 if ,i do that1 ,i must be carried  
into chapel every morning1 and that will
 not edify the remainder of your        
congregation4 ,what can ,i do if ,i go8 
,i could not say1 ,o ,lord1 ,i have     
erred and strayed like a lost sheep4    
,you see yonder gratings8 ,i'm not      

likely to err and stray1 for the next   
six months1 beyond those bars4' ',ah6   
that is not what we mean4'  ',then what 
do you mean8 ,can ,i join with those men
 in saying1 ,o ,lord1 who hath given us 
grace with one accord to make our common
 supplications unto thee1 when ,i shall 
make no supplications1 unless ,i am     
forced to it8 ,you know the prisoners   
only go because the turnkey is behind   
them8' ,then ,i showed him the passage1 
',we have done those things which we    
ought not to have done1' c1 and asked   
him what ,i had done1 or had the chance 
of doing1 wrong1 since ,i came there8   
,at this he was puzzled a little1 and he
 at last answered--  ',ah6 but we think 
there is a divine influence in prayer1  
which might operate upon you4'  ',not in
 this place1' ,i answered1 'where it is 
so much contradicted by your practice4  
,i will agree to this1 that when on     
,sundays you preach1 and ,i may hear    
something new1 ,i will come4'  ,he ended
 the colloquy after a very ,christian   

manner1 by saying1 ',well1 if you don't 
come to prayers1 you shall be locked    
up4'  ,i answered1 ',well1 sir1 give    
your orders4' ,i need scarcely say this 
was done1 in one form or other1 to the  
end of my imprisonment4 ,sometimes ,i   
was locked in my sleeping cell1 but     
generally in the day room2 but ,i found 
it more agreeable than the litany1 and  
,i never asked for any alteration4 ,i   
went to chapel only on ,sunday 7the     
preaching day71 but never to the        
week-day prayers4  ,offensive           
regulations were often sought to be     
applied to me4 ,one was an attempt to   
make me wear the prison dress4 ,i said  
,i preferred my own clothes4 ,the answer
 was1 the rules were imperative1 and    
they must enforce them4 ,i inquired     
whether they had any spare time on their
 hands1 for it would be necessary to    
dress me every morning4 ,my answer was  
reported to the magistrates1 and ,i     
heard no more of the project4  ,out of  
doors much is said against passive      

resistance1 but in prison it is the only
 resistance possible1 and is often very 
effective1 ,if you speak or act1 you are
 at the mercy of those in whose power   
you are4 ,take any aggressive step and  
your gaoler knocks you down1 or locks   
you up in a moment4 ,but if you simply  
will not do a thing1 if without bluster 
or bravado you leave it to them to make 
you do it1 or to do it themselves1 they 
often find it of rather awkward         
accomplishment4 ,to carry me to prayers 
or to dress me every morning was far    
more offensive and troublesome to them  
than breaking my head1 so they left me  
alone4  ,old ,mr4 ,jones1 the           
magistrate1 paid me frequent visits4    
,one day he took me to the door1 and    
pointing upwards1 asked1 'did ,i not see
 there proofs sufficient of the         
existence of a ,god8' ,i answered1 that 
'when the boundless expanse of the skies
 had been before me ,i had been unable  
to think so1 and now the few square     
feet1 which the high walls of the gaol  

permitted me to see1 were still less    
likely to inspire me with that          
conviction4'  ,a little reflection ought
 to have shown these gentlemen1 who made
 these appeals to me1 that the time and 
place were both inauspicious in which to
 address to me such interrogatories4    
,indeed it was offensive1 and on more   
than one occasion ,i told them1 that    
having undertaken to compel my          
acquiescence with them by imprisonment1 
,i could never divest myself of the     
conviction that it was superfluous to   
pretend to win me by argument4  ,the    
last visit ,mr4 ,jones paid was to read 
me a psalm4 ,as on my trial ,i had      
complained of the discourtesy of their  
calling me a fool1 the old man was      
particularly anxious to justify himself4
 ,he found what seemed to him a         
favourable opportunity in the           
circumstance that a ,german scholar had 
at this time published a new translation
 of the ,psalms of ,david4 ,as ,i had   
spoken favourably of ,german            

theologians1 he concluded that this one 
would have weight with me4 ,he brought  
down the book1 summoned the whole class 
of prisoners1 and we stood twelve or    
eighteen in a row4 ,proclaiming         
attention1 he said he wished to read to 
us1 and particularly to me1 the #adth   
,psalm4 ,reading aloud the first verse  
where ,david observes 'the fool hath    
said in his heart there is no ,god1'    
,mr4 ,jones said1 ',now1 ,holyoake1 you 
complained that we called you a         
fool--you see ,david says you are a     
fool4' ,the old man looked round with an
 air of triumph1 which was considerably 
moderated when ,i gently but distinctly 
observed that ',i no more liked rudeness
 in the mouth of ,david than in the     
mouth of a magistrate4' ,my             
fellow-prisoners glanced around in      
consternation at my audacity1 and       
expected to hear me ordered into the    
dark cell1 but old ,mr4 ,jones turned   
round1 shut up his book1 and walked away
 without saying a word1 and ,i never saw

 him afterwards4  ,the next day ,i wrote
 to the ,board of ,magistrates to say   
that 'if visiting magistrates continued 
to question me before other prisoners1  
where the discipline of the gaol forbade
 adequate reply1 ,i should refuse to    
answer4' ,in future ,i was always called
 out by myself and spoken with alone4   
,before my trial the same ,mr4 ,jones   
told me that my friend1 ,mr4 ,richard   
,carlile1 had died in ,london a very    
horrible death1 recanting all his       
principles before he expired1 and urged 
me to take warning by his example and do
 the same4 ,shortly after ,mr4 ,jones   
was surprised to meet ,mr4 ,carlile in  
the corridor of the gaol bringing me    
refreshments1 which his experience      
assured him ,i needed4 ,and it was not  
the least part of my pride on the day of
 my trial that he sat near me from      
morning till night1 encouraging me by   
his presence1 and assisting me by his   
wisdom4 ,after my conviction he         
vindicated me assiduously through the   

press1 addressed to me public letters1  
and wrote to ,justice ,erskine and ,sir 
,robert ,peel1 threatening to renew his 
former war against the ,church if my    
situation was not ameliorated--a very   
curious species of recantation it must  
be confessed1 but a fair sample of the  
usual death-bed 'scenes' which the      
pulpits relate4  ,my company as a       
prisoner was not of a very agreeable    
kind1 ,i had to listen to recitals of   
depravity such as ,i never heard before1
 and do not wish to hear again4 ,but    
this was not all4 ,sometimes a companion
 was filthy as well as wicked4 ,one man 
sent in among us had the itch1 and      
before ,i found it out he had held me by
 the wrists in some accidental          
wrestle--which misfortune might have    
subjected me to a taste of prison       
discipline which few will be able to    
imagine4  ,when the surgeon finds that a
 prisoner has this disease he makes no  
remark1 but shortly after1 the man is   
called out by the turnkey1 whom he has  

to follow through various corridors to  
remote cells at the top of the gaol1    
near the gallows4 ,upon entering one1 he
 is told to take off his clothes4 ,as   
soon as he is in a state of nudity1 his 
clothes are taken away1 and locked up4  
,he is then shown a cask filled with    
brimstone1 grease1 and other mixture1 of
 the consistence of pitch1 and quite as 
offensive to the sight4 ,with this he is
 made to smear his entire person over2  
when this is done1 he is left locked up 
in the place4 ,all he finds about him is
 a bed on which are two blankets1 in    
which hundreds1 smeared as he is1 have  
lain before4 ,when no longer able to    
endure the cold1 he may lie in this     
place4 ,thick and chilly1 these         
disgusting coverings adjust themselves  
to the body when softened by the warmth1
 where1 without caution1 the liquid will
 run into the eyes and the mouth4 ,here 
he remains some days and eats the uncut 
food which is brought to him as well as 
he can with his filthy fingers4  ,such  

is the description of a process of cure 
7as ,i gathered from several whose      
experience ,i heard narrated71 to which 
,i might have been subjected1 if1 when  
,i discovered pustules on my wrists     
similar to those on the infected man1 ,i
 had not kept from the observation of   
the surgeon while they remained4 ,my    
habit of daily ablution1 and some       
medicine ,i procured1 saved me from more
 than temporary discomfort4 ,i need     
scarcely add1 that had such a cure been 
attempted on me1 ,i should have had to  
be carried to the place1 and the        
application must have been effected by  
force4  ,after some weeks' imprisonment1
 and when ,i had had sufficient         
opportunity of noticing the disposition 
of the authorities1 and estimating the  
treatment to which ,i was to be         
subjected1 ,i addressed the following1  
slightly abridged--  ,memorial of       
,george ,jacob ,holyoake1 prisoner for  
,blasphemy99 ,in ,gloucester  ,county   
,gaol1 to ,sir ,james ,graham1 her      

,majesty's ,secretary of ,state4        
,sir1--,at the recent ,gloucester       
,assizes your memorialist was sentenced 
by ,mr4 ,justice ,erskine to six months'
 imprisonment for the alleged offence of
 blasphemy4  ,since that period he has  
been confined in the common gaol and fed
 on convict gruel1 bread1 rice1 and     
potatoes4 ,it is true your memorialist  
is allowed the privilege of purchasing1 
to some extent1 better food1 but his    
imprisonment renders this privilege     
valueless1 without the assistance of    
friends1 upon whom are the claims of his
 family left dependent by his           
incarceration4  ,under these            
circumstances your memorialist applied  
to the surgeon of the gaol for other    
diet2 by the surgeon he was referred to 
the governor2 by the governor to the    
visiting magistrates1 and by the        
visiting magistrates back to e surgeon1 
who subsequently has recommended1 though
 not prescribed1 better diet3 but from  
the recommendation of it1 your          

memorialist concludes that in that      
gentleman's opinion it is necessary4    
,two other surgeons whom your           
memorialist consulted on entering his   
prison warned him that a generous diet  
was absolutely requisite1 and the decay 
of your memorialist's health is a       
testimony of its truth4  ,he prays for  
other regulations than those under which
 he sees visitors4 ,they have always to 
stand1 sometimes to talk through the    
bars of a gate1 and are permitted to    
stay but a few minutes4 ,as your        
memorialist is far from his friends1    
these rules continually prevent him     
seeing them1 and receiving those        
attentions to his wants he otherwise    
would4  ,he wishes permission to remain 
up in an evening until the hour of the  
debtors' retiring 7#i o'clock71 or at   
least to be allowed the use of a light  
in his cell1 in which he is confined    
from twelve to fourteen hours1 and      
during the winter he will be so shut up 
sixteen hours and a half4 ,thus much    

time will be lost your memorialist could
 employ upon a little mathematical      
speculation49999 which would afford him 
the gratification of contributing       
himself to the support of his family4   
99 ,i always said ',prisoner for        
,blasphemy' in all my                   
communications1 and directed my friends 
so to address me1 to      which the     
magistrates objected4 ,but if ,i was to 
be written      to at a gaol1 ,i        
preferred to be known as a prisoner for 
opinion rather than as a prisoner for   
crime4       9999 ,mentioned to prevent 
the supposition on the part of ,sir     
,james that the time would be employed  
in writing blasphemy1      which would  
be fatal to the application4  ,as every 
newspaper sent your memorialist is      
retained by the governor1 your          
memorialist prays the liberty of reading
 them4  ,the visiting magistrates have  
said they should have no objection to   
grant what your memorialist asks1 had   
they the power2 and hence he prays the  

exercise of your authority on his       
behalf4  ,as custom attaches little     
weight to the opinion of a prisoner1 it 
becomes not your memorialist to speak of
 his own case1 but trusts he may with   
propriety refer to it as one in which he
 believes will be found little that is  
aggravated4 ,seduced in the warmth of   
debate to express his honest opinion on 
a religious question1 young and         
inexperienced1 he took not the          
hypocrite's crooned path1 nor the       
dissembler's hidden way1 but unwarily   
uttered language disingenuousness would 
have concealed or art have polished1 and
 became in consequence the ready victim 
of ,christianity4 ,criminal without     
intention1 punishment brings with it no 
consciousness or guilt1 and hence that  
which in other circumstances would be   
light1 is1 in his1 a bitter infliction4 
,george ,jacob ,holyoake4   ,sir ,james 
gave me permission to remain up till #i 
o'clock after ,i had been three months  
in prison4 ,but for the concession it   

required an effort to be grateful1 for  
it was a permission to remain up without
 fire and without light4 ,for unless ,i 
could pay for fire and light1 ,i had to 
go without4 ,whether ,sir ,james ,graham
 intended this1 ,i have no means of     
knowing2 he probably expected that the  
magistrates would not interpret his     
order as a privilege to sit up in the   
cold and in the dark1 which would be a  
greater punishment than going to bed4   
,but they did put this construction upon
 it4 ,as ,sir ,james did not mention    
fire and light1 they refused to supply  
them4  ,mathematical studies were       
impossible1 for the authorities also    
refused to allow me my instruments1 lest
 ,i should commit suicide with them2 but
 ,i had provided for that1 as every man 
should who goes to gaol4 ,there was just
 width enough in my cell to admit of the
 heavy iron bed-frame being raised on   
one end4 ,by marking a circle round one 
of the legs1 which ,i did with a        
fragment of stone1 ,i determined the    

place on which the leg would fall when  
the frame was pulled down4 ,my head once
 placed on that spot1 the great weight  
of the frame would have sent the narrow 
leg through the brain1 and death must   
have been instantaneous4 ,i am no friend
 of suicide1 and had a thousand reasons 
for living2 but ,i had not been long in 
gaol before ,i saw many things to which 
none but the degraded or the weak would 
submit--and lest they should come to my 
turn1 ,i provided against them4  ,about 
this time an event occurred in my family
 which converted my imprisonment into an
 unexpected bitterness4 ,against that   
'love abroad which means spite 7or      
indifference7 at home1' ,i early set my 
face4 ,between me and ,eleanor1 my wife1
 there always existed an understanding  
as to the risks ,i ran in my free       
speaking4 ,whatever consequences fell   
upon my own head alone1 ,i had myself   
only to please in incurring3 but those  
which affected others1 ,i had no right  
to invoke1 without their consent--and   

this consent ,i always sought from my   
wife1 in any special case which arose4  
,at our marriage1 ,eleanor very well    
understood that my life somewhat        
resembled a soldier's1 and that it would
 often include duties and dangers not   
compatible with perennial fireside      
comfort ,nor did she object to this1 and
 ,i have had the sweet fortune always to
 be left to do whatever ,i should have  
done1 had ,i been single and childless4 
,on my saying1 on the imprisonment of   
,mr4 ,southwell1 first editor of the    
,oracle1 that it was my duty to take his
 place1 ,eleanor replied--',do what it  
seems your duty to do1 and ,i and the   
children will take care of ourselves as 
well as we can4 ,when they grow up1 ,i  
trust they will contemplate with little 
satisfaction any advantage they might   
have enjoyed at the expense of their    
father's duty4 ,we can leave them no    
riches1 but we may at least leave them a
 good example1 and an unsoiled name4'   
,it was therefore that when ,i came to  

leave home1 to go to my trial1 all was  
calm and cheerful as usual1 though there
 was much around to suggest uneven      
thoughts4 ,on that day no one came to   
accompany me or to spend an hour of     
solace with those from whom ,i parted4  
,had there been a single friend present 
to have made up the appearance of       
society after ,i was gone1 the          
loneliness would have been less bitter4 
,as ,i left the house ,i heard that cry 
break forth which had been suppressed   
that it might not sadden my departure4  
,before ,i had proceeded far up ,windsor
 ,street1 ,ashted1 ,i was arrested by   
,madeline's silvery voice calling 'good 
bye1 dada1' and turning round ,i saw her
 large bright1 black eyes 7which every  
body praised7 peering like two stars    
round the lintel of the door4 ,i am glad
 ,i did not then know that ,i should    
never hear that voice again1 nor see    
those bright eyes any more4 ,to turn the
 attention of mankind in an atheistical 
direction may do harm to some4 ,the     

propagation of all new views does harm1 
more or less4 ,as in commercial         
speculations much capital is sunk before
 any returns come in1 so in the         
improvement of the people1 you sacrifice
 some old feeling which is good1 before 
the new opinion1 which is better1 can be
 created4 ,but all the new opinions ,i  
have at any time imbibed have never     
produced so much harm in me as the      
prudential doctrines of ,political      
,economy4 ,the doctrine that it is      
disreputable in the poor to have        
children1 is salutary1 no doubt--but it 
requires to be enforced under           
limitation4 ,to regard the existence of 
your little ones as an expense1 and the 
gentle love of children as a luxury in  
which you cannot indulge without        
reproach1 is to sour life1 dry up       
affection1 and blight those whose tender
 years should be passed in a perpetual  
smile of joy4 ,to look into the face of 
your child and feel that the hand of    
death1 which shall hush that gentle     

voice1 pale those rosy cheeks1 and      
quench those animated eyes--is a        
political blessing1 is horrible4 ,i look
 back with mute terror on the day when  
,i was under the influence of those     
feelings4 ,i cannot dwell upon it4 ,i   
would burn all the books of ,political  
,economy ,i ever read 7and ,i think it  
the science of many blessings7 if ,i    
could feel once more on my knee the     
gentle hand of my child from whom ,i    
parted that day1 too stoical to shed a  
tear4  ,after a few weeks of my         
imprisonment had passed away1           
hint--words came of ,madeline's failing 
health4 ,out of some money sent by my   
private friends1 ,john ,fowler and ,paul
 ,rodgers1 of ,shefield1 to buy better  
food than the gaol afforded1 ,i saved a 
guinea and sent it to ,birmingham to    
purchase ,madeline a winter cloak--it   
was spent in buying her a coffin4       
,though of perfect health and agility1  
she was one of those children who       
require entire preservation from        

exposure1 want1 or fatigue4 ,on ten     
shillings per week1 which was all that  
the ,anti-,persecution ,union could     
provide1 this could not be done1 as     
,eveline1 then in arms1 left her mother 
no opportunity of increasing that small 
income4 ,cold succeeded cold1 when want 
of more means caused them all to go to  
live in a house ill ventilated1 and     
where several were ill of fever1 which  
soon attacked ,madeline4  ,mr4 ,chilton 
sent me several intimations to prepare  
for the worst1 should it happen4 ,but ,i
 could not believe in the worst         
happening1 and indeed ,i had yet to     
realise what the worst implied4 ,at     
length one morning the heavy corridor   
door grated on its harsh hinges1 and the
 morose turnkey--fit messenger of       
misery--put a letter into my hand4 ,as  
it had been1 as usual1 broken open--for 
there is no feeling1 not even that of   
affection and death1 respected in a     
gaol--,ogden knew its contents1 and in  
justice to him ,i must say he           

endeavoured1 as well as one whose       
ability lay in his moroseness could1 to 
speak a word of apology and sympathy4   
,the strangeness and awkwardness of the 
attempt drew my attention to the fatal  
black border1 which gave me sensations  
such as ,i never received before and    
never shall again1 for the first death  
of one dear to you1 like that of the    
first love1 brings with it a feeling    
which is never repeated4 ,i remember    
that some prisoner came and covered me  
with a coat1 for ,i had walked into the 
yard without one4 ,captain ,mason and   
two friends came round1 but ,i could not
 speak to them4 ,he addressed a few     
words to me1 but ,i turned away4  ,then 
,madeline had died the death of the     
poor2 she had perished among the people 
who know neither hope nor comfort1 a    
pledge that ,i shall never forsake those
 with whose sad destiny one so dear to  
me is linked4 ,though in the death of   
poverty there is nothing remarkable1    
though hundreds of children are daily   

killed off in the same way1 yet parents 
unused to this form of calamity find in 
it1 the first time1 a bitterness which  
can never be told4 ,the ten shillings   
per week income of the family was made  
up by small subscriptions by some who   
knew me1 and by a few outside who       
happened to think useful the course ,i  
had taken4 ,one or two friends whose    
professions had beforetime been profuse1
 ,eleanor met4 ,they were cold1 or to   
her they seemed so4 ,she thought they   
feared a continued acquaintance might   
lay them under some tax to contribute to
 her support4 ,this she could never     
bear4 ,offering her hand to one who did 
not take it1 she went home1 and nothing 
induced her to subject herself to such  
suspicion any more4 ,a quick and        
enduring sense of independence1 which no
 privation could disturb1 was an        
attribute in her character ,i had always
 admired1 and this dreadful form of its 
operation ,i have never been able to    
censure4 ,the ,roman mother put on the  

armour of her son as he went out1 and   
saw him brought home dead from the fight
 without weakness3 but in that case1 the
 strife of arms1 the glory of victory1  
the sublimity of duty1 and the applause 
of the senate1 were so many supports to 
the mother's heroism2 but harder far is 
it for a mother to bend over her child  
day by day and night after night1 and   
see relentless death eat like a canker  
into the bud of the damask cheek of     
beauty1 and be too poor to snatch it    
from the tomb--and this with no trumpet 
note1 no clang of arms to drown the     
dying scream1 no incense of glory to    
raise the sinking heart1 no applause of 
a generous people to reward the         
sacrifice--without one soul near who    
could penetrate to the depth of that    
desolation1 and utter those words of    
sympathy which is all which humanity can
 do to soothe in the face of death4     
,there were indeed those near who might 
have done so1 but some could not        
comprehend this grief1 and others1 for  

reasons of ,political ,economy1 'did not
 see the good of regret' at a child     
dying1 and they will learn from these   
pages for the first time that these     
wounds existed which1 after eight years1
 are still fresh4  ,there are homesteads
 that have witnessed deeds ,that battle 
fields1 with all their bannered pomp1   
,have little to compare with4 ,life's   
great play ,may1 so it have an actor    
great enough1 ,be well performed upon a 
humble stage4  ',my dada's coming to see
 me1' ,madeline exclaimed on the night  
of her death1 with that full1 pure1 and 
thrilling tone which marked her when in 
health4 ',i am sure he is coming to     
night1 mama1' and then remembering that 
that could not be1 she said 'write to   
him1 mama1 he will come to see me2' and 
these were the last words she           
uttered--and all that remains now is the
 memory of that cheerless1 tireless     
room1 and the midnight reverberation of 
that voice which ,i would give a new    
world to hear again4  ,for her father1  

he was debating in incoherence the vain 
proposition as to whether he could      
prevail on the ,governor to let him go  
home for one night to smooth and watch  
over that dying pillow1 and he would    
cheerfully and gratefully have expiated 
the privilege by six or twelve months'  
additional imprisonment4  ,o liberty6   
whom the nations welcome with triumphant
 shouts1 ,whom all to whom the world    
owes its progress have worshipped--over 
how many graves hast thou walked6       
,rising with the morning's dawn1 making 
all people radiant with thy presence1   
the poet thrills as thy chariot is borne
 on the tarn's golden beams1 and he     
hails thee as a goddess1 and blesses    
thee as a bride1 and sings of thy       
triumphs and benefactions6 ,but those   
who serve thee--who make their lives a  
sad and desert waste that thy pathway   
through the world may be                
unobstructed--who kneel to thee in their
 dungeon-churches and pour out the      
incense of life's young warm blood at   

gibbet-altars3 they know thee by thy    
gory garments dripping with the blood of
 the father and the tear of the orphan1 
and the desolation which precedes thy   
progress4 ,the anthems of thy march are 
hollow voices from ,siberia's mines1 and
 ,vinceanes' cells--the wail of women   
under the ,russian knout1 the groans of 
,konarski and the whistle of bullets    
which slay the ,bandiera and ,blum--thy 
trophies are the fresh graves of        
,hungary and ,rome1 thy throne is on a  
hecatomb of earth's noblest and bravest 
sons4 ,yet art thou still sacred in the 
eyes of man4 ,queen of ,genius and      
,progress6 emblem of that suffering     
through which ,humanity is purified and 
developed6 ,thou hast trodden on the    
grave of my child1 and ,i worship then  
still1 although thou mayst yet tread on 
my own4  ,yes1 though ,i neither        
hope--for that would be                 
presumptuous--nor expect it1 seeing no  
foundation1 ,i shall be pleased to find 
a life after this4 ,not a life where    

those are punished who were unable to   
believe without evidence1 and unwilling 
to act in spite of reason--for the      
prospect of annihilation is pleasanter  
and more profitable to contemplate3 not 
a life where an easy faith is regarded  
as 'easy virtue' is regarded among some 
men--but a life where those we have     
loved and lost here are restored to us  
again--for there1 in that ,hall where   
those may meet who have been sacrificed 
in the cause of duty--where no gross1 or
 blind1 or selfish1 or cruel nature     
mingles1 where none sit but those whom  
human service and endurance have        
purified and entitled to that high      
company1 ,madeline will be a ,hebe4     
,yes1 a future life1 bringing with it   
the admission to such companionship1    
would be a noble joy to contemplate4    
,but ,christianity has no such dream as 
this4  ,on making arrangements for the  
burial1 at the ,birmingham ,cemetery1   
the clerk asked whether they should     
provide a ,minister1 or whether the     

friends of the deceased would do so8    
,the answer was--',a minister was not   
desired4 ',then ,i presume1' the clerk  
observed1 'you mean that you will       
provide one yourselves8' ,the answer    
again was1 'we do not require one at    
all4 ,please send the beadle merely4'   
,on the day of the interment the beadle 
attended as requested4 ,he was          
instructed to conduct the burial party  
direct to the grave2 and not into the   
chapel1 which he did without remark3 and
 when the coffin1 plain but pretty1     
without tinsel or angels1 was lowered1  
each threw a bouquet of flowers in1 and 
when the grave was made up they returned
 home4 ,thus ,madeline was buried1 as   
became her innocence and her fate1      
without parade1 without priest1 or      
priestly ceremony4 ,had hesitation been 
displayed1 or previous inquiries been   
made as to whether what was done could  
have been permitted1 no question but    
that a priest would have been inflicted1
 as at the grave of ,carlile and        

others--for ,christianity1 always       
officious and rude to the dissentient1  
is never more so than when opposition is
 paralysed by agony on the bed of death1
 or hushed in speechless sadness by the 
side of the grave4  ,as it would only be
 painful to ,mrs4 ,holyoake1 ,i never   
wished her to visit me2 but after the   
death of ,madeline she desired it1 and  
she brought little ',eveline' 7a name   
given to her in lieu of her own because 
of its similarity to ,madeline47 ,on    
this occasion ,mr4 ,bransby ,cooper sent
 to say that the magistrates'           
,committee-room1 an elegant and cheerful
 apartment1 should be at my service1 at 
,mrs4 ,holyoake's visit4 ,mr4 ,cooper   
was the first of the magistrates to send
 a message of condolence on the death of
 ,madeline1 and in this instance his    
kindness was delicate and generous4 ,as 
on the day ,mrs4 ,holyoake came the     
magistrates happened to hold a meeting  
in it1 an apology was sent me1 and the  
,lodge placed at my service4 ,no turnkey

 was sent in1 and ,i was permitted to   
see my friends with an air of perfect   
freedom4 ,my sister ,caroline1 who was  
one of the party1 brought me a present  
of wine and cigars4 ,as both were       
forbidden by the rules of the gaol1 ,i  
declined to touch them4 ,as ,i was      
trusted without restraint1 ,i was doubly
 anxious to respect a liberty so        
generously conceded4 ,had they set a    
watch over me1 ,i should have had less  
scruple1 and perhaps have thought it a  
merit to defeat their suspicions4       
,captain ,mason1 the governor1 was a    
study--a type of the gentleman1         
official1 and conventional1 whose       
qualities were instructive4 ,bland1     
imperturbable1 civil1 and firm1 he was  
never weak and never rude4 ,among the   
uneducated1 all decisive action is      
announced in commotion or bluster4 ,the 
gentleman is never in a hurry1 never in 
a contention4 ,if you annoy him1 are    
rude to him1 impose upon him1 or menace 
him1 perhaps he quietly indicates his   

opinion of the impropriety1 perhaps his 
resolution is taken without4 ,he avoids 
you4 ,his defence is prevention4        
,renewal of offence1 renewal of         
intercourse1 chance of altercation or   
repetition1 is simply impossible4 ,such 
was ,captain ,mason4 ,i watched his     
manners with pleasure--he governed the  
gaol like a drawing room1 excepting that
 the desserts were not quite the same4  
,i saw rude men baffled1 they could not 
make out how4 ,possibly he had nerves   
and sensibility1 but these articles were
 not in common use4 ,they were kept     
under lock and key1 and never brought   
out in the routine of official duties4  
,as blandly and courteously as he wished
 me good morning1 he would have         
conducted me to the gallows1 had        
instruction to that effect reached him4 
,he would have apologised for the       
inconvenience1 but he would have hung me
 while ,i was saying 'pray don't mention
 it4'  ,excepting in one transaction our
 intercourse was unruffled4 ,when ,i had

 left the gaol1 a prisoner 7the ,master 
of a ,post ,office7 the only gentleman  
on my side of the prison1 addressed to  
me a letter of accusation against the   
governor--an act which made me a        
participator in his sentiments4 ,as it  
passed through the governor's hands1 he 
wrote under the name the crime and      
sentence of the writer--a brief and     
bitter retort4 ,i reenclosed the letter 
to the writer with a note to ,captain   
,mason1 observing that on leaving the   
gaol ,i had expressed to him the only   
opinion ,i entertained of him1 and ,i   
should regard it as unmanly to be a     
party to reproaches which ,i did not see
 reason to address to him in person4 ,he
 wrote me back1 with a soldier's        
honourable frankness1 that ',i had      
always behaved honourably in my         
intercourse with him1 and he did not    
believe ,i would do an unmanly thing4'  
,the exceptional transaction with the   
,captain referred to was this4 ,one of  
my fellow-prisoners was an epileptic    

man1 whose ignorance and irritability1  
more than any crime1 had led to his     
imprisonment4 ,as ,i kept a sort of     
school in our common room1 and taught a 
few things to those about me who were   
disposed to learn1 ,i had become        
interested in ,upton1 a humble and      
unhappy man1 who learned at grammar     
anxiously4 ,some nights he would fall   
out of bed in an epileptic fit1 and lie 
groaning on the stone floor for an hour 
or more together4 ,it was in vain that  
we shouted to the turnkeys4 ,they who   
can hear a man think of escaping1 cannot
 hear when he breaks his neck4 ,upton   
representing that a little tobacco1 to  
which he had been accustomed1 would save
 him from the frequency of these fits1  
,i procured him some4 ,smoking it one   
day in a corner1 in a paper pipe made   
for the purpose out of one of my        
letters1 the governor came upon him     
through a side door4 ,upon being asked  
how he procured it1 he answered1 ',from 
a man who had just come in from the     

,sessions4' ,this the governor did not  
believe4 ,at night ,ogden made an       
immense speech at me1 in which that     
luminous functionary inserted several   
elephantine hints1 to the effect that he
 knew the source whence the aforesaid   
tobacco came4 ,it was a treat to hear   
,ogden hint2 it was like a hippopotamus 
putting his paw out1 or kicking a man   
down stairs4 ,as soon as ,i could get to
 speak to ,upton1 ,i prevailed upon him 
to allow me to write to the governor1   
tell him the truth1 and take the blame  
upon myself1 reminding ,upton that a    
good man might be surprised into a lie1 
but only a bad man would persist in one4
 ,the retaliation of the governor was   
refined and vindictive4 ,instead of     
ordering me into a dark cell on bread   
and water for two or three days1 which  
was the authorised punishment1 he       
ordered two gates to be locked between  
me and my visitors1 so that those who   
spoke were obliged to shout to me4 ,this
 he continued1 with slight variation1 to

 the end of my imprisonment4 ,this      
deprived me of the pleasure of seeing   
ladies who called1 as ,i would never    
consent to see them under circumstances 
of so much humiliation4  ,captain ,mason
 had had previous proof that my         
professions might be trusted4 ,when     
first imprisoned1 the reader perhaps    
remembers ,i was kept 7though on my way 
home after a journey7 a fortnight while 
the magistrates played at bail4 ,when at
 length they signified their intention  
of accepting it1 ,captain ,mason took   
me1 through the city1 to ,bransby       
,cooper's house1 where the bail-deed was
 to be completed4 ,on our way ,i asked  
him if it would be necessary for me to  
take an oath1 before my own bond could  
be accepted1 as ,i should object to take
 an oath8 ,he turned round and          
replied--',why1 ,holyoake1 as you don't 
believe in any of the ,gods1 you could  
have no objection to swear by them all4'
 ,i explained to him that if the        
,magistrate would regard my oath as a   

mere ceremony1 by which ,i rendered     
myself liable to penalties in case of   
violated truth or failure in my bond1 ,i
 would take the oath readily1 if all the
 ,gods of the ,pantheon were in it3 but 
if it were regarded as a profession of  
my religious faith1 ,i would not take   
it4 ,it was better that ,i should go    
back to gaol1 than to make a profession 
of belief which would mislead others4 ,i
 told ,mr4 ,cooper the same when we     
reached his house4 ,he1 however1 said my
 signature would do4  ,one day ,i       
concluded a dialogue with my chaplain   
upon the principle of reciprocation1 i4 
e4 of retorting his language upon       
himself1 and1 ,i think1 not without     
utility1 for he never afterwards fell   
into that insensible arrogance of speech
 so common among pastors4 ,on the       
occasion referred to1 he began--',are   
you really an atheist1 ,mr4 ,holyoake8' 
',really ,i am4'  ',you deny that there 
is a ,god8'  ',no2 ,i deny that there is
 sufficient reason to believe that there

 is one4'  ',i am very glad to find that
 you have not the temerity to say that  
there is no ,god4'  ',and ,i am very    
sorry to find that you have the temerity
 to say there is one4 ,if it be absurd  
in me to deny what ,i cannot            
demonstrate1 is it not improper for you 
to avert so dogmatically what you cannot
 prove8'  ',then where would you leave  
the question of atheism8'  ',just where 
it leaves us both4 ',it is a question of
 probability4' ',ah6 the probabilities  
in favour of atheism are very few4'     
',how know you that8 ,did you ever      
examine the question without prejudice1 
or read that written in its favour      
without fear8 ,those who dare not look  
at all never see far4'  ',but if the    
atheist has so much on his side1 why    
does he not make it known8 ,we do not   
keep back our evidences4'  ',has the    
atheist an equal opportunity with you8  
,is it generous in you to taunt him with
 lack of evidence1 when you are prepared
 to punish its production8'  ',the      

reason is that your principles are so   
horrible2 as ,robert ,hall has said1    
',atheism is a bloody and ferocious     
system4'  ',permit me1 sir1 to return   
that gentle speech--to tell you that    
your principles are horrible1 and that  
,christianity is a bloody and ferocious 
system4'  ',really ,i am shocked to hear
 you speak so dreadfully of             
,christianity4'  ',why should you be    
shocked to hear what you are not shocked
 to say8'  ',but atheism is so          
revolting4' ',but ,christianity is so   
revolting4'  ',how dangerous is it for  
atheism to corrupt the minds of         
children4' ',how pernicious is it for   
,christian doctrines to corrupt the     
thoughts of infancy4'  ',but you are    
only asserting4'  ',are you doing       
otherwise8 ,i sometimes think that      
,christians would be more respectful in 
their speech if the same language could 
be applied to them with impunity which  
they apply to others4'  ',but1 my dear  
sir1 the language of the atheist is so  

shocking to ,christian feeling4'  ',and1
 my dear sir1 has it never occurred to  
you that the language of the ,christian 
is shocking to atheistical feeling8'    
',atheists have a right to their        
opinions1 ,i allow1 but not to publish  
them4'  ',i shall think you speak       
reasonably when you permit the same rule
 to be applied to the ,christian4'      
',but you really cannot be an atheist8' 
',and you say this who have been a party
 to imprisoning me here for being one6  
,if you believe yourself1 go and demand 
my liberation4'  ',ah6 when you come to 
die you will wish that you were a       
,christian4'  ',can it be that ,i shall 
wish to hold a creed that ,i            
distrust--one that leads me to deny     
another the liberty ,i claim for myself8
 ,if to be capable of looking back with 
satisfaction on conduct like this is to 
be a ,christian1 may ,i never die the   
death of the righteous1 and may my last 
end never be like his4'  ,as the general
 treatment pursued towards me did not   

work an satisfactory conversion1 some   
attempts were made by gentler means4    
,taken one day into a sleeping cell for 
privacy1 one who had the power to fulfil
 his promises passed in review the      
casualties of a life like mine1 and     
asked whether ,i had not better change  
it4 ,thinking ,i was seduced by some    
attraction which belonged to my         
position1 he suggested how fickle a     
thing was popularity1 and how soon the  
applause of friends might die away1 or  
change with the growth or refinement of 
my conviction1 into suspicion or even   
hate4 ,had ,i not better accept the     
editorship of a paper1 where ,i should  
not be required to contradict1 but      
merely to avoid advocating my views8    
,had ,i not better accept a school in a 
retired part of the country---a girls'  
school also might be given to ,mrs4     
,holyoake1 and our joint incomes would  
ensure competence1 respectability1 and  
usefulness8 ,i answered1 ',i think you  
have mistaken me4 ,the opinions ,i      

defended are also my convictions2 and   
thinking them useful1 it seems my duty  
to propagate them1 and the discharge of 
this duty is more serious in my eyes    
than you suppose2 nor do the inducements
 you picture exist4 ,do you not see that
 ,i am nearly friendless8 ,i am without 
even the attentions of those from whom  
,i have some right to expect it4 ,except
 ,mr4 ,farn1 ,mr4 ,watts1 and ,mr4      
,campbell1 none of my colleagues among  
the ,social ,missionaries have written  
me a friendly word4 ,the editor of the  
,new ,moral ,world1 upon whose          
protection ,i have some claim1 has      
written no word in my favour4 ,the only 
public defence for which ,i am indebted 
has come from strange papers1 and       
unknown men4 ,even ,mr4 ,owen1 the      
advocacy of whose opinions involved me  
in this prosecution1 he who occupied the
 largest share of my veneration1 has not
 even recognised my existence by a      
single line4 ,this affair may have made 
some noise1 but ,i am not so young as to

 mistake noise for popularity1 nor so   
weak as to think popularity the one     
thing needful4 ,popularity1 is to be won
 by those who can flatter the public1   
but that estimation which is alone worth
 having is only to be won by the service
 of the people1 and that is not the work
 of youth but of life4 ,that which you  
call my cause is yet in an infantine    
state4 ,it has no attractions but the   
rude ones of daring and truth4 ,it      
requires to be divested of antagonism1  
and developed in its relations to       
political and social interests and      
personal character4 ,this must be the   
work of time1 and judging from the      
present1 it will be a work of difficult 
and precarious effort4 ,at present we   
number no public friends of wealth or   
influence4 ,we have every thing to      
gain--yet the comparative affluence you 
offer would be a canker to my peace1    
while it was the price of duty evaded4  
,my self-chosen faith1 presumptuous and 
thorny1 will be sweeter to walk4 ,it is 

enough that you see ,i am not misled by 
its attractions4 ,now ,i tread these    
floors with a proud step1 and meet your 
eye with unblenched brow1 because it is 
necessary to show you that in defence of
 my opinions ,i feel neither fear nor   
guilt--but when ,i walk from this place 
into the wilderness of the world1 my    
steps will falter and my face will pale1
 because my path will lie over the grave
 of my child4'  ,all ,i remember farther
 is that my tempter made a few not      
unfeeling remarks1 and led me back in   
silence to my usual cell4  ,the final   
efforts for my conversion were on this  
wise4 ,the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,cooper sent for  
me1 a few days before my liberation1 and
 asked me to follow him to the chapel4  
,arrived there1 he ascended the pulpit1 
motioning me to a prisoner's pew without
 even asking me to be seated4 ,my neck  
was stiff with a severe cold1 and ,i was
 as ill able as ill disposed to be      
catechised4 ,i stood leaning on the     
spikes--not inapt emblems of such       

,christian love as ,i had there been    
made acquainted with4 ,the good         
,chaplain prayed--,i did not move4 ,he  
looked at me to catch my eye--,i kept   
mine fixed on the spikes4 ,he addressed 
me--,i made no sign4 ,he spoke some     
minutes--still ,i remained motionless4  
,he paused and asked what ,i thought of 
his representations--,i answered no     
word4 ,he seemed to think he was making 
a favourable impression4 ,he resumed1   
and came to another peroration1 and     
again besought me to answer--still no   
motion1 no word from me4 ,he began a    
third time1 and touched all serious     
topics which he could command1 and came 
again to an elaborate peroration on     
deathbeds2 and as ,i remained still     
silent and immovable1 he said1 somewhat 
perplexed this time1 ',holyoake1 won't  
you speak8' ,i then answered ',not while
 we occupy these places4 ,do you not    
preach to me and place me here where    
prisoners stand8 ,i take this to be a   
ceremony1 and not a conversation4' ,he  

walked down from his pulpit and asked me
 to accompany him1 when he took me into 
several cells till he found one warmed  
with hot air1 and asked would ,i speak  
with him there on friendly terms8 ,i    
answered1 'with pleasure2' and there we 
conversed for the last time4 ,i troubled
 him to repeat his arguments1 as ,i     
would not admit that ,i had attended to 
a word4 ,when he had done1 ,i briefly   
assured him that my experience there had
 not created in me any desire to be a   
,christian3 he had brought before me no 
new evidences1 and as it had been found 
necessary to enforce those ,i knew      
before by penal reasons1 the operation  
had rather diminished their weight in my
 estimation4  ,he professed himself     
anxious to 'present me with a ,bible'--a
 fact which ,i knew was destined to make
 a figure in the next ,gaol ,report to  
the ,county ,magistrates2 ,i therefore  
resolved to have one worth acceptance1  
or not one at all4 ,when he brought to  
me the usual prison copy1 ,i            

respectfully declined it1 ,i said1 a    
thin copy bound in calf1 in pearl type1 
with marginal references1 would be      
interesting to me1 but the              
dumpling-shaped book he offered1 ,i     
could never endure in my library4 ,he   
deliberated--the trade price of the     
,bible he offered me was about tenpence1
 that ,i desiderated would cost him half
 a guinea4 ,the reflection was fatal4   
,the ,bible never came1 and the         
evangelical fact that ',the prisoner    
,george ,jacob ,holyoake was presented  
with a copy of the ,holy ,scriptures    
before leaving the gaol1 which it is    
hoped1 under the ,divine blessing1 will 
be the means of bringing him to the     
knowledge of the truth'--was never      
recorded4  ,about this period ,i saw the
 magistrates for the last time4 ,there  
seemed to be a full ,board of them1 and 
,mr4 ,bransby ,cooper was in the chair4 
,before withdrawing ,i addressed ,mr4   
,cooper1 and said--',as in a short time 
,i shall leave this place1 ,i wish1     

before doing so1 to express to you my   
sense of the kindness and consideration 
shown me by you when ,mrs4 ,holyoake    
visited me here4 ,it is one of the few  
things ,i shall remember with pleasure  
when again at liberty4 ,you will not1 ,i
 fear1 believe in the possibility of one
 of my opinions feeling gratitude1 but  
,i will at least assure you of it4' ,the
 answer he made was a compensation for  
much that ,i had experienced4 ,in that  
loud voice in which he usually spoke1 he
 exclaimed--',yes1 ,i will say this1    
that ,i believe you1 ,holyoake4 ,i don't
 believe that you could be a hypocrite4'
  ,one day a magistrate1 described to me
 as the ,hon4 and ,rev1 ,andrew ,sayer1 
sent me a copy of ,paley's works1       
requesting my particular attention to   
his ,natural ,theology4 ',did ,i put    
into your hands1' ,i said1 addressing   
that gentleman1 'an atheistic work1 you 
would tell me of the contamination you  
dread2 and may ,i not plead the same    
risk in perusing your theistical book8  

,but1 as all in the search after truth  
must venture through phases of error1 ,i
 shall not hesitate to comply with your 
request2 and that you may be certain    
that ,i do so1 you may1 when ,i have    
ended1 put to me any question upon the  
contents you please4' ,it happened that 
my examination resulted in my writing   
',paley ,refuted in his ,own ,words4'   
,when ,mr4 ,sayer came to ask me what   
conclusions ,i had come to on the books 
he had lent me1 ,i made this answer to  
him--99 ,sir1 ,i am surprised at your   
asking me this question4 ,does it become
 you1 a clergyman and a magistrate1 to  
ask me to commit crime8'  ',what do you 
mean8' he inquired4  ',i mean this1' ,i 
replied1 'that in having punished my    
last expression of opinion as a crime1  
by bringing me here1 it does not become 
you to put religious inquiries to me    
again4' ,he seemed confounded2 and on   
this occasion ,i showed him1 that while 
,christianity punished as crime the     
expression of dissentient opinions1     

,christians were disqualified from      
seeking the state of any man's thoughts 
with respect to religion4 ,unless one   
volunteers explanations1 ,christians    
have plainly no right to demand them4   
,they put themselves out of the pale of 
ordinary privilege4  ,writing ',paley   
,refuted' and the ',short and ,easy     
,method with the ,saints'--a title      
suggested by ',leslie's ,short and ,easy
 ,method with the ,deist1' another book 
put into my hands by the                
authorities--occupied me till the end of
 my imprisonment4 ,on the #aeth of      
,february1 #ahdc1 ,i was liberated2 and 
three days after 7having paid visits of 
acknowledgment to my friends in         
,gloucester1 ,cheltenham1 and           
,worcester7 ,i rejoined 7what ,i might  
then term the remains of7 my family in  
,birmingham4    ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,after 
,,the ,,liberation  ,on rejoining my    
colleagues of the ,oracle of ,reason1 ,i
 proceeded to issue an address to our   
readers4 ,the substance of it1 which was

 as follows1 comprises some additional  
facts of my prison experience3--  ',my  
,friends1--,it is now six months since  
cut and hacked1 ,i fell1 not merely in  
the language of the parable but         
literally1 among thieves4 ,of those who 
caused that contact1 ,i am afraid ,i    
must say1 as ,william ,hutton said of an
 untoward sweetheart--,there was little 
love between us at first1 and heaven has
 been pleased to decrease it on a       
further acquaintance4 ,christians       
profess to draw men to ,jesus with cords
 of love1 but were it not for their     
judicious foresight in telling us that  
they axe cords of love1 few would find  
it out4  ',to friends in ,gloucester199 
,cheltenham1 ,birmingham1 ,london19999  
and other places1 ,i owe many thanks for
 what has been contributed for my       
support1 and for that of my family1     
during my imprisonment4       99 ,to    
,gloucester two special acknowledgments 
are due4 ,first      to a young lady1   
the niece of the ,innkeeper1 in whose   

house      ,i resided1 when awaiting    
,trial1 both at the sessions and        
assises4 ,with no other knowledge of me 
than these occasions      afforded1 and 
with no prepossession in favour of my   
opinions1 but simply from that generous 
sympathy women often      display1 she  
frequently brought me refreshments to   
the gaol1      and was a medium of      
communication with my friends1 and often
      answered inquiries of my family   
which the restrictions of      the gaol 
sometimes rendered it impossible for me 
even to      know4 ,in the romance of   
incident1 she afterwards became the     
wife of my friend ,mr4 ,chilton4 ,the   
other instance was that      of ,mrs4   
,price1 a woman in humble circumstances1
 who1 during      the latter part of my 
imprisonment1 brought me dinner every   
,sunday4  ,both ,mrs4 ,price and her    
husband were utterly      unknown to me4
       9999 ,at the time of the death of
 ,madeline1 ,mrs4 ,ralph ,thomas1       
of ,london1 sent to ,mrs4 ,holyoake     

,l#c1 subscribed by herself      and    
personal friends4  ,for their attentions
 ,i believe no thanks were asked and    
none are wished4 ,yet ,i am concerned to
 make acknowledgments1 because a man    
always values highly the kindness he    
does not expect4 ,when the words were   
spoken which led to my prosecution1 ,i  
expected that the cautious would think  
that ,i had gone too far--that the      
prudent would think that ,i had been too
 rash--that my friends would be afraid  
for me1 and that the timid would be     
afraid for themselves4 ,but ,i held with
 ,polydamus1 that       ,to speak his   
thoughts is every freeman's right--     
,in peace and war1 in council and in    
fight4  ',and1 what ,i regarded as      
greater than my right1 ,i felt it to be 
my duty4 ,besides1 my honour was        
concerned4 ,i could not descend to that 
disingenuousness ,i had often counselled
 others to scorn4 ,hence1 in the course 
,i took1 ,i did not think it necessary  
to calculate consequences2 a man's true 

concern is with his principles1 and not 
with his fate4 ,i pretended to no public
 virtue1 and ,i laid claim to no        
praise--,i did no more than every man   
ought to do4 ,that doing so little has  
been so rewarded by the exertions of    
many friends for my protection1 ,i must 
be pleased--but had nothing been done1  
,i trust ,i should have found pride in  
penury and satisfaction under neglect1  
in the reflection that ,i had discharged
 my duty and preserved consistency4     
',when my memorial to ,sir ,james       
,graham was returned to the magistrates 
for their opinion1 they came to me1 and 
,mr4 ,bransby ,cooper stormed out with  
great violence--,you were sent here1    
sir1 for punishment1 and you have       
nothing else to expect4 ,i consider you 
worse than the greatest felon in the    
gaol2 you have been guilty of the most  
atrocious crime a man can possibly      
commit4 ,i have told ,sir ,james ,graham
 what you deserve4 ,i knew that these   
magistrates were ,christians4 ,i was    

told they were gentlemen1 but ,i thought
 them furies499       99 ,yet such is   
the inconsistency of the ,christian     
character      when allied to a generous
 nature1 that ,mr4 ,bransby ,cooper     
who1 as a ,christian1 behaved with so   
much rudeness1 had just      before     
given instruction to the turnkeys to    
treat me with      respect1 with a view 
to save me from less harshness from     
other officials than that which1 in     
other moods1 he so      plentifully     
inflicted on me himself4  ',the prison  
diet was bread1 gruel1 and potatoes4 ,on
 two days in each week boiled rice was  
substituted for potatoes2 and after ,i  
had been in prison nine weeks ,i was1 by
 the rules1 allowed a small portion of  
salt beef on ,thursdays and ,sundays4   
,as this fare is deemed in              
,gloucestershire a famous specific for  
the cure of atheism1 it may not be out  
of place to explain its virtues4 ,the   
gruel was little remarkable for its     
delicate flavour and little celebrated  

for its nutritious qualities1 and known 
by the luxurious cognomen of skilly4    
,the rice had a blue cast1 a saline     
taste1 and a slimy look4 ,the beef ,i   
could not often taste1 seldom chew1 and 
never digest--,i should say it was      
rather leather mode than a la mode4 ,the
 whole of the food could only be taken  
by a ploughman's appetite1 and only be  
digested by a navigator's stomach4      
',the indirect occasion of my           
prosecution was the editorship of the   
,oracle4 ,when ,mr4 ,southwell was      
apprehended no ,social ,missionary came 
forward to continue his paper1 although 
many of them were better qualified to do
 so than myself4 ,socialism had always  
attached great importance to freedom of 
expression1 and ,socialism's advocates  
had been styled apostles of freethought4
 ,knowing this1 ,i felt that it would be
 a dishonourable reflection should any  
one refuse personally to support what he
 was known publicly to approve4 ,had    
,mr4 ,fleming been placed in ,mr4       

,southwell's situation1 and had he been 
of opinion that ,i could have defended  
his violated liberty by taking his      
place1 ,i should have edited the ,new   
,moral ,world as cheerfully as ,i did   
the ,oracle of ,reason4 ,when ,i speak  
of freedom of speech and liberty for    
all1 ,i know of no distinction between  
myself and those who differ from me--,i 
see with an equal eye the ,atheist and  
the ,christian1 the violent and the     
gentle1 the dogmatic and the modest4    
',that is true of ,christianity which   
has been said of ,catholicism1 ,humane  
individuals may express their abhorrence
 of the sentiments of                   
persecution--bodies of men1 sections of 
the church itself1 nay many of the      
dignitaries may abjure them1 and protest
 that they have never acted upon them1  
nor ever will enforce them--yet all this
 will not avail to give a discerning man
 the smallest security for his liberty1 
his property1 or his life2 for as long  
as those intolerant decrees remain upon 

the statute book1 they can at any time  
be revived4 ,it therefore behoves       
everyone to set a guard over that       
liberty1 for the loss of which no       
religion will ever compensate4 ,the     
conviction should be permanent that     
,christianity is a fearful thing4 ,but  
bad men may laud it--mistaken men may   
contend that there is some good in      
it--unthinking men may give currency to 
its terms--and weak men may connive at  
its delusions1 but we ought to regard   
with different sentiments a system which
 tramples upon the feelings of humanity 
and the principles of liberty4 ,let us  
then secure the antidote--free          
expression of opposite opinion4 ,shall  
it be said that we are content to wear  
mental fetters8 ,when ,protestants1 who 
dare never think without the ,bible and 
,prayer ,book1 have shaken off the iron 
despotism of ,catholicism--when         
,methodists and even ,ranters have      
refused to submit their thoughts to be  
cut down to the ,procrustean bed of     

conventional opinion--let not           
,christians mock at ,freethinking       
pusillanimity and deride us as holders  
of craven principles4 ,not only for     
ourselves but for others are our        
exertions demanded4 ,what patrimony has 
the poor man but his free thoughts8     
,industry will not save him from chill  
penury's grip1 nor virtue from the      
poor-house grave--let us then preserve  
and perfect the humble inheritance of   
those who have no other4'99  ,in prison 
it is not safe to make complaints4 ,you 
are too much in the power of those      
around you to escape reprisals of a     
serious kind1 but this did not deter me 
from what ,i conceived to be a duty1 and
 which might make the future easier for 
others who might follow me in the same  
way4 ,besides the endeavours ,i had made
 within the prison1 with a view to      
tolerable treatment1 ,i addressed1 on my
 release1 the following letter to the   
editor of the ,cheltenham ,free ,press--
  ',mr4 ,editor1--,as prisons and prison

 discipline have lately occupied much   
public attention1 ,i am induced to offer
 to your notice a little recent         
experience in such matters4 ,what ,i    
have written1 ,i intended to have stated
 to a public meeting1 but suffering from
 debility1 which makes me glad to avoid 
excitement1 ,i seek the calmer medium of
 your paper4  ',i speak of ,gloucester  
,county ,gaol4 ,i believe the prison    
inspector is of opinion that the rules  
of that place are harsh and cruel4 ,now1
 should a prisoner seek a partial       
exemption from their operation1 the     
process he goes through is very curious4
 ,he applies to a turnkey--the turnkey  
answers1 my duty is determinate and my  
province clear2 ,i cannot do it4        
,probably1 he refers the prisoner to the
 surgeon4 ,the surgeon is seen--he      
refers him to the governor1 the governor
 refers him to the visiting             
magistrates--they reply1 we have no     
power to grant the request1 ,sir ,james 
,graham only can do that4 ,sir ,james   

,graham is memorialised1 who1 as is     
usual1 answers1 ,the visiting           
magistrates best know what is proper--,i
 only grant what they recommend4 ,any   
further application to them would be    
construed into a wilful annoyance1 and  
the prisoner is fortunate who can sit   
down like ,sterne's happy man--pleased  
he knows not why1 and contented he knows
 not wherefore4 ,of course ,i blame no  
one1 for there is no one to blame1 and  
this constitutes the beauty of the      
system49999       99 ,revised and       
abridged from the ,oracle4       9999   
,it seemed to me useful to make         
applications for what ,i      wanted in 
writing4 ,it prevented mistakes1 and    
afterwards      admitted of proof4 ,the 
governor used to come to me and say1    
',now1 ,holyoake1 it is of no use       
sending this memorial4  ,it is sure not 
to be attended to1 and he would so      
obligingly bestow upon me the treasures 
of his experience on the futility of the
 course ,i was pursuing1 that at times  

it really did seem not only useless--but
 uncivil to persist4 ,but ,i used to    
say1 ',captain ,mason1 ,i suppose you   
are right as to the result4 ,that makes 
no difference1 however1 as to my duty2  
you may put my memorials in the fire1 if
 you like1 as soon as ,i have written   
them2 still ,i will make the proper     
application to every officer and every  
authority1 and deliver them to your     
care1 as in duty bound4' ,i knew the    
,captain would not burn them--,i knew   
more1 ,i knew he dare not burn them4 ,i 
knew1 also1 that each would be duly     
delivered to the proper party4 ,further 
,i knew this1 that if his dissuasions   
had deterred me from sending in my      
complaints1 that when ,i left the prison
 the authorities would destroy every    
representation ,i might make1 by saying 
',if there had been anything wrong      
,holyoake would have complained1 but as 
he has not done so1 the aggravation he  
points out could not have existed1 or   
could not have been grievous4'          

,foreseeing this ,i provided against it1
 and disregarding the refusal of my     
applications1 ,i addressed them all     
round with scrupulous formality4 ,the   
result was1 that on my liberation ,i    
found myself in a position to defy      
contradiction in any allegations ,i had 
to advance2 and though ,i published this
 letter immediately under the eyes of   
the magistrates1 it was never           
contradicted4  ,should ,i individualise1
 it would only be to say1 that the      
governor is a gentleman of some         
excellent qualities1 and some           
unintelligible conduct2 that the surgeon
 possesses the suaviter in modo without 
the fortiter in re2 and that the        
magistrates are little gods1 who1 like  
,jupiter1 thunder oftener than they     
smile4  ',what of health ,i have1 ,i owe
 to my friends1 who supplied me with    
such food as my constitution required1  
for had ,i been compelled to subsist on 
the diet of the prison1 my health1 by   
this time1 would have been quite broken4

 ,with the direction of my own medical  
adviser1 ,i made this representation to 
the proper authorities at the gaol2 ,i  
made them to the commissioners who were 
lately there1 and ,i made them to ,sir  
,james ,graham299 ,i therefore conceive 
that ,i am justified in repeating them  
here4 ,the surgeon admitted the         
necessity of better diet1 but referred  
me to the governor1 and he sent me the  
fruitless round ,i have described4 ,now 
the province of the governor was the    
care of my person1 and the province of  
the surgeon the care of my health4 ,the 
governor ought not to have permitted the
 reference to him1 and the surgeon ought
 not to have made it4 ,either the       
surgeon should have refused my          
application with decision1 or have      
allowed it with independence4 ,upon this
 subject1 the commissioners reminded me1
 that if the surgeon did not order what 
was necessary for my health1 he was     
responsible for it4 ,i replied that ,i  
knew this1 and that they also knew1 that

 a prisoner1 like ,beale of ,northleach1
 must die before he could avail himself 
of such responsibility1 and that this   
was but grave consolation4 ,but of the  
surgeon ,i wish to speak impartially1   
and ,i gladly admit1 that his manner was
 always very kind1 but ,i complain that 
his answers were always very indecisive4
 ,what he recommended he seldom         
prescribed1 and professed that he must  
consult the governor when he should have
 consulted only himself4 ,this fault may
 seem little1 but its effects are great4
 ,in a gaol1 the surgeon is the only    
person who stands between a prisoner and
 the grave1 and it is indispensable that
 to the quality of humanity those of    
independence and decision should be     
joined4 ,the kind of answers to which ,i
 have alluded were given to me more than
 once1 and given to others as well as to
 me4 ,and ,i again repeat1 that had ,i  
been without friends1 ,i should have    
left my prison without health4       99 
,in consequence of these representations

 some medical      gentlemen of the city
 were brought in to examine me1 who     
pronounced my life to be in no danger1  
and therefore 7so it      seemed7 my    
health was not regarded as worth        
improving by      better food4 ,provided
 ,i did not make a case fer the ,house  
of      ,commons1 that was enough4 ,they
 appeared to consider      themselves as
 bound to keep me alive and no more4    
',akin to the want of better food1 was  
the want of exercise1 and no want of    
damp4 ,the yard in which ,i walked was  
so small1 that ,i always became giddy1  
through the frequent turnings1 before ,i
 became refreshed4 ,the governor        
sometimes permitted the ,fines-,class in
 which ,i was1 to walk in his garden2   
but the occasions came seldom and lasted
 not long--and ,i was previously so     
enervated by confinement1 that the      
unusual exercise thus taken1 threw me   
into a slight fever4 ,generally         
speaking1 the place in which ,i was     
confined was miserably humid1 and1      

although ,i took perpetual care1 ,i had 
almost a perpetual cold4  ',an          
application for a trivial favour often  
brought down upon me ruthless treatment4
 ,the visiting magistrates would come1  
and before the other prisoners denounce 
me as the worst felon in the gaol1 and  
the most atrocious of criminals4 ,i was 
directed to ascribe this to the         
petulance of age and the rancour of     
orthodoxy2 but ,i thought it proceeded  
from bad taste and worse feeling4       
',from first to last1 every newspaper   
sent me was detained2 every letter from 
me was perused1 and every one to me was 
broken open and read--and the very      
seals1 if they happened to be heterodox1
 were interdicted4 ,thus the privacy of 
affection and friendship were violated1 
and mind as well as body laid under one 
restraint4  ',when ,i saw friends it was
 but for a few minutes1 and then through
 the bars of a gate2 to shake hands was 
a privilege1 and to converse unheard1   
impossible4 ,to me it was a momentary   

satisfaction made an enduring           
mortification4 ,to the public it may    
seem a light matter that nothing can be 
spoken to a visitor unheard by officers1
 but it is no light matter to a         
prisoner4 ,the commissioners            
inquired--,can you make no communication
 to your friends without its passing    
under the eyes of the governor1 or      
through the ears of the turnkey8 ,i     
answered--,none2 and that it was not    
prudent for a prisoner to mention openly
 what affected persons in whose power he
 was put--that no prisoner must         
calculate on gaolers being generous1 for
 they owned few virtues not written in  
their rules4 ,i spoke from experience1  
and gave them cases in point499         
',during the latter portion of my time  
all my friends were denied access to me1
 which1 though it interfered with the   
supply of my wants1 ,i did not1 for the 
reasons stated1 much regret4 ,but this  
,i did regret--all my letters were      
detained1 and ,i was refused the        

privilege of writing a single letter to 
my family4 ,the reason assigned by the  
governor for this was the enforcement of
 new rules1 but ,i know that they were  
enforced without proper authority1 and  
,i believe applied only to me4999999    
',those are happy who are for ever      
preserved from the reception cells of   
,gloucester ,gaol4 ,of the one in which 
,i was put1 the floor was filthy1 the   
bed was filthier1 and the window was    
filthier still1 for in the window       
was--what ,i sicken at while ,i write--a
 rag full of human excrement4 ,and of   
the bed1 a prisoner assured me that when
 he lay in it the lice crept up his     
throat off the corners of the blanket   
which covered him4 ,this statement1 on  
my direction1 he made to the            
commissioners4       99 ,one case ,i    
allude to was this4 ,mr4 ,bransby       
,cooper and ,mr4      ,jones had called 
me out to state that an application ,i  
had      made for better dietary would  
not be acceded to4 ,mr4 ,cooper         

said the surgeon did not prescribe any  
other diet4 ,i said1      ',it appears  
to me1 sir1 that the surgeon dare not   
prescribe      any other diet1 unless he
 was first assured you would            
approve of it4' ,the answer of ,mr4     
,cooper was loud1 harsh1      brief1 and
 decisive4 ',of course1 sir1 he dare    
not4' ,thus the      fierce candour of  
this man broke through the web-work of  
cautiousness which surrounded prisoners 
there1 and spoke the      truth for     
once4       9999 ,i have since been told
 that ,mr4 ,alcott1 of ,america1 was    
among the number1 who1 being a visitor  
in ,england1 had but      one           
opportunity of calling upon me4         
999999,on one occasion ,richard ,carlile
 brought me a present of a      handsome
 pair of large razors1 which were sent  
back lest ,i      should cut my throat  
with them4 ,the rules of the gaol forbid
      the entrance of such articles1 but
 this reason for their      rejection   
was not in the rules1 but added as      

suitable to my      case4  ',the gaol   
chapel is a cold place4 ,often1 on      
entering it1 ,i have exclaimed1 with    
,jugurtha1 on entering his ,roman       
dungeon--,heavens6 how cold is this bath
 of yours6 ,yet in this place1 during   
this inclement season1 the prisoners are
 assembled every morning to hear        
prayers1 on empty stomachs1 after       
sixteen hours' confinement in their     
night cells4 ,on the long prayer        
mornings1 they are detained in chapel   
three-quarters of an hour1 and the      
penitentiary men1 on their return to    
their cells1 find their gruel on the    
stone floor1 gone cold in their absence4
 ,i mention this matter with reluctance1
 as some may suppose that ,i notice it  
only from want of religion2 but perhaps 
a little reflection will convince them  
that believers1 as well as unbelievers1 
can appreciate a warm breakfast on a    
cold morning6--and that an asthmatical  
man1 however sound his faith1 will have 
his affection painfully increased by    

enervation1 inanition1 and sudden cold4 
,this practice ,i do not say is contrary
 to the rules1 for it would be difficult
 to say what is1 or what is not1        
contrary to them--and ,i never met with 
any one at the gaol who could tell4 ,but
 the practice is contrary to the act of 
the #dth of ,geo4 ,,iv41 chap4 #fd1 see4
 #cj1 which is professed to regulate it4
  ',a circumstance' of a different      
nature from any of the foregoing ,i     
think it my duty to notice4 ,after a    
considerable portion of my term of      
imprisonment had elapsed1 and after ,i  
had memorialised ,sir ,james ,graham1 ,i
 was permitted to remain up in an       
evening with my books4 ,to this ,i owe  
what of pleasure ,i can be said to have 
experienced in gaol1 and with pleasure  
,i acknowledge it499       99 ,before   
this privilege was conceded ,i whiled   
away the long      nights by writing on 
the cover of a book1 on which ,i had    
adjusted threads at equal intervals2    
under these threads ,i      slipped     

paper1 and thus wrote on the lines made 
by the      threads1 which kept in the  
dark the words from running into        
each other4 ,when a boy ,i learned to   
write with my eyes shut1      and my    
playful acquirement now became of       
service to me4 ,in      this way ,i     
wrote some letters for the ,oracle1 and 
much of      my correspondence4         
,scattered by force1 our little party at
      that time1 and for some years     
after1 had to be kept together      oy  
letters1 and1 incredible as it will     
sound1 ,i wrote during      my          
imprisonment from first to last nearly  
#bjjj letters4 ,the      governor did   
not see them all1 but he saw so many1   
that one      day he said ,i sent out   
more letters than usually went          
through a local post office4  ',i prefer
 leaving these statements without       
comment1 and content myself with saying1
 that ,i can abundantly substantiate    
every one of them4 ,on ,saturday last   
they were partly examined at the gaol by

 the magistrates1 but ,i heard nothing  
that impugned their correctness or      
affected the propriety of their         
appearing before the public4 ,if ,i have
 made any misrepresentations1 ,i shall  
be sorry2 and what is proved to be wrong
 ,i will cheerfully retract4 ,i have    
written from no malevolence1 for ,i feel
 none1 and1 as what ,i have related     
affects me no longer1 my only motive is 
the hope of benefiting the unfortunate  
beings whom ,i have left behind me4 ,my 
object is not1 as some may suspect1 to  
excite commiseration on my own part2 to 
do this ,i have no wish1 and no         
expectation1 for in ,cheltenham it seems
 to be a received maxim1 that they who  
have little faith have no               
feelings--certainly1 none are respected4
  ',how my imprisonment is supposed to  
affect me toward religion1 ,i cannot    
tell2 ,i only know that ,i have no      
change of sentiment to own4 ,during six 
months ,i have been shut out from the   
common light and common air--from those 

whom the bonds of friendship connected1 
and the ties of affection endeared2 and 
some of these ties are broken for ever4 
,after this1 ,i can only say1 that ,i   
have greater difficulty than ever in    
believing that humanity is the associate
 of piety2 and if ,christianity has no  
expounders more attractive than those ,i
 have fallen in with1 the day of my     
conversion is still distant4  ',it was  
taught to me that the religion of ,jesus
 cherished kindness1 that it promoted   
our best affections1 and reclaimed the  
erring in love4 ,but how is this        
accomplished in gaol8 ,the man who goes 
there must leave his affections1 his    
feelings1 and his sensibilities behind  
him--for in gaol all are blighted1      
deadened1 and destroyed4 ,there no      
appeals are made but to coward fears1   
and no antidote applied to error but    
misery4 ,indeed1 ,i cannot dwell upon   
,christianity's treatment of what she   
considers my errors1 without wishing1   
with ,themistocles1 that ,i could learn 

the art of forgetting4 ,with regard to  
the cause of my prosecution1 ,i admit   
that ,i might be wrong in the sentiments
 which ,i held1 but ,i could not be     
wrong in frankly avowing them4 ,and ,i  
may answer to ,christians1 as did       
,aristides to the tyrant ,dionysius--,i 
am sorry for what you have done1 but ,i 
am not sorry for what ,i have said4     
,despite all that has succeeded1 ,i     
still prefer integrity to liberty4 ,my  
resolution has long been taken1 to speak
 nothing or to speak what ,i think--for 
,who dares think one thing and another  
tell1      ,my heart detests him as the 
gates of hell4  ',christians speak what 
they think useful1 and the same         
privilege ought to be conceded to me4 ,a
 difference in faith ought not to make a
 difference in right4 ,but while it does
 so1 those who cannot pronounce the     
required ,shibboleth must arm themselves
 to bear4 ,those are poor principles for
 which a man is unwilling to suffer when
 they are in danger4 ,it is an          

encouraging reflection1 that though a   
man's fate may be at others' disposal1  
his character is ever at his own--and   
that no enemy can dishonour him who will
 not dishonour himself4  ',yours        
respectfully1  ',gloucester1 ,feb4 #g1  
#ahdc4  ',g4 ,j4 ,holyoake4'   ,the     
,commissioners referred to in this      
letter asked me1 when ,i was first taken
 before them1 whether ,i had any        
complaint to make8  ,i said ,i had4     
,did ,i wish to give it as evidence8  ,i
 said ,i did4  ,in the evening of the   
next day1 between #i and #aj o'clock1 ,i
 was called up and taken into their     
presence again4 ,the governor of the    
gaol1 ,captain ,mason1 and the surgeon1 
,mr4 ,hicks1 were present4  ',take a    
seat1 ,mr4 ,holyoake1' said the speaker 
of the ,board--,dr4 ,blissett ,hawkins1 
,i believe4 ,i did so4  ',now1 ,mr4     
,holyoake1 what have you to complain    
of8' said the speaking ,commissioner4   
',nothing1 sir4'  ',nothing6 ,why what  
do you mean8'  ',what ,i say1 sir4'     

',but did you not say that you had      
evidence that you wished to give8'  ',i 
did4'  ',has it not been at your request
 that you have been brought before us   
for that purpose8'  ',it has8'  ',then  
what are we to understand by your       
present statement8'  ',why1 sir1 what   
you hardly need me to explain4 ,i cannot
 give evidence before these gentlemen1' 
looking towards the governor and the    
surgeon4  ',true1' said the questioner4 
',captain ,mason1 ,mr4 ,hicks1 you will 
please to withdraw4'  ,when they were   
gone1 ',now1 ,mr4 ,holyoake1 you can    
speak freely1' said the chairman4  ',but
 first ,i must have your guarantee that 
,i shall suffer no inconvenience in     
consequence4'  ',why what danger do you 
run8' was asked me4  ',this4 ,am ,i not 
in the power of governor and surgeon8   
,can they not retaliate in your absence8
 ,no prisoner is safe in any gaol1 as   
you ought to know1 if the authorities   
come to regard him as reporting them4   
,if you decline to give me this         

guarantee ,i shall not make any         
communication to you1 and when ,i am at 
liberty again1 ,i shall have a right to 
publish that your commission did not    
learn the whole truth at this gaol--that
 it did not even put itself in a        
condition to learn it4'  ',well1' the   
chairman said1 ',we guarantee that you  
shall suffer no inconvenience in        
consequence of any evidence you may give
 to us4'  ,then1 and not till then1 did 
,i proceed to explain what in the last  
letter and notes is recounted4 ,the     
commissioners kept their word4 ,the     
severity of the discipline1 instituted  
by the governor when a visitor came1 was
 somewhat relaxed2 and once or twice1   
when ,i was suffering from cold 7before 
unnoticed71 a can of mutton broth was   
ordered me by the surgeon1 in which ,i  
found a very sensible looking piece of  
mutton4  ,nothing more of importance    
remains to be narrated4 ,concluding1 let
 me solicit consideration to the moral  
aspects of ,christianity1 as set forth  

in this narrative1 and to what ,i       
consider the political moral of these   
pages4 ,many persons whose candour and  
general intelligence ,i do not distrust1
 tell me that the persecution here      
recounted1 is not to be ascribed to     
,christianity4 ,to this ,i make the     
answer made on this subject 7the        
imprisonment of myself1 ,adams1 and     
others7 by my late friend1 ,maltus      
,questell ,ryall4 ',christians set a    
watch upon them--,christians informed   
against them--,christians prejudiced the
 public against them4 ,by ,christian pay
 were hireling lawyers retained--by     
,christian witnesses confronted--by the 
,christian ,press misrepresented--by    
,christian juries found guilty1 by      
,christian judges condemned4' ,it is    
necessary to put the argument in this   
cumulative form to satisfy some         
understandings2 but a well-informed and 
candid ,christian can hardly be supposed
 to need formal proof on this head4 ,a  
careful study of the ,evangelists some  

time after this imprisonment1 satisfied 
me that the religion of ,jesus involves 
persecution4 ,a man who believes that   
men need saving1 that there is only one 
way whereby they can be saved1 that his 
way is that way1 and that it is better  
for a man to lose the whole world than  
to lose his own soul by missing that    
way1 such a believer will inevitably    
coerce all he can into it4 ,if he is not
 a persecutor he ought1 in moral        
consistency1 to be one4 ,having the fear
 of the philanthropists and of the      
humanitarians before his eyes1 he may   
modify his practice1 but it will be at  
the expense of his penetration or of his
 religious duty4 ,i have no difficulty  
whatever in understanding that the      
conscientious among the old inquisitors 
might be men of benevolence--spiritual  
physicians1 who amputated existence with
 a view to save the eternal life of the 
patient4 ,it is now many years since ,i 
wrote or spoke against them on religious
 grounds1 and for a long period ,i have 

ceased to speak of persecution as being 
either unscriptural or unchristian4  ,it
 will not do to say that what we have   
seen of persecution has been but the    
abuse of ,christianity4 ,it is in itself
 a condemnation of ,christianity to be  
obliged to repudiate the conduct of all 
,christian churches4 ,it will not do to 
say that ,christians have not been wise 
enough to see1 nor good enough to image1
 the divine gentleness of ,christ4 ,the 
,christian churches have been presided  
over by pastors who have possessed both 
penetration and purity in the highest   
degree--who were able to see what there 
was to be seen1 and devout enough to    
render it in their lives4 ,try the      
question even in our day4 ,if ,christ be
 the symbol of love and gentleness to   
all who believe in his name1 how is it  
that in every part of the world the     
,freethinker should fear to fall into   
the hands of the ,christian8 ,how is it 
that he must set a watch upon his words 
in every town and hamlet in our own     

land1 lest the free expression of his   
deepest convictions should cost him his 
position1 his employment1 and his       
character8 ,branded1 outcast1 and       
friendless1 the ,christian's door is the
 last at which he would knock--the      
,christian's fireside is the last at    
which he would find a welcome--and the  
,christian pastor1 who in knowledge1    
duty1 and example1 most nearly resembles
 the ,christ whom he preaches1 is the   
last man whose path the ,freethinker    
would wish to cross1 or into whose ear  
he would venture to pour the tale of his
 expatriations4  ,in one passage in my  
defence ,i represent persecution1 as    
,lord ,brougham and others have done1 as
 a power which spreads opinion4 ,i      
believed so then1 but believe it no     
longer4 ,i have lived to watch the      
effects of persecution1 and have seen it
 put down the truth so often1 as no     
longer to doubt its bad efficacy4 ,the  
ignorant1 the timid1 the opulent1 and   
the conventional 7and these make up the 

mass of mankind71 are all deterred by   
danger or opprobrium1 ,the resolute and 
the reckless1 the only parties who      
persist1 labour under accumulated       
disadvantages4 ,condemned to spend then 
time in self-defence1 development of    
doctrine--the legitimate and only source
 of permanent influence--is nearly      
impossible to them3 and it is well for  
them if they escape acquiring an        
antagonistic spirit1 which disfigures   
their advocacy and misrepresents their  
character4 ,their only proselytes are   
those who come to them out of spite or  
out of sympathy1 and who of course miss 
the intellectual ground of conviction1  
and can be of little real service until 
they have been re-educated4  ,if1 as ,i 
admit1 persecution will put down        
opinion1 what objection's there to its  
employment when it puts down error8 ,i  
answer1 ',beware of its use1 because it 
may put down the truth also4'           
,persecution is not an ordeal4 ,free    
discussion is the only test capable of  

distinguishing and establishing the     
truth4 ,the proper condemnation of      
persecution is1 that it is an           
illegitimate opposition which is sure to
 be discountenanced as men become manly 
and refined4 ,the armies of a civilised 
people observe1 even in the deadly      
strife of battle1 some rules of         
honourable warfare1 and do not descend  
to the arts of treachery or tactics of  
savages4 ,we may surely hope that in the
 battle for religious truth1 a sense of 
honour will prevent the dominant party  
from taking against its opponents the   
undue advantage of persecution4         
,montaigne relates that when            
,polyperchon advised ,alexander to take 
advantage of the night for attacking    
,darius1 ',by no means1' answered the   
noble general2 ',it is not for such a   
man as ,i am to steal such an advantage2
 ,i had rather repent me of my fortune  
than be ashamed of my victory1' ,it is  
not too much to expect that             
,christianity will always be less       

refined than ,war4  ,persecution1 always
 a disaster1 was not however with us a  
defeat4 ,we were not put down by        
persecution2 we continued the ,oracle a 
hundred and four weeks1 then the        
,movement1 sixty-eight weeks1 and the   
,reasoner will soon have completed ten  
volumes4 ,besides having written in our 
publications1 we have1 in almost all the
 principal cities and towns in the      
kingdom1 spoken1 since the trial at     
,gloucester1 with the utmost            
explicitness4 ,the imprisonment has at  
least been of this service--and this is 
all--it has enabled me to speak         
accredited by the sincerity which       
otherwise could not have been so        
satisfactorily manifest to the          
multitude4 ,to have spent1 without      
shrinking1 some portion of life in      
prison in defence of public liberty1    
gives the same authority among the      
people as having graduated at a         
university does among scholars499 ,the  
fact is a sad illustration of the brutal

 manner in which the people are         
condemned to win the enlargement of     
their liberties4 ,in cases where        
clergymen have menaced me with renewed  
imprisonment1 ,i have always            
answered--',i consider myself as having 
taken out a license to speak freely4    
,the government made a charge to me of  
six months' imprisonment for that       
privilege1 and ,i paid the price4 ,if   
you have renewed demands upon me1 let me
 know them1 and ,i will endeavour to    
meet them2 but do not interrupt me4'    
99 ,when the ,prizes were awarded me for
 writing the ,literary      ,lectures of
 the ,manchester ,unity1 an attempt was 
made to      cancel the award on the    
ground of my having been imprisoned1    
but it was immediately quashed4 ,when   
the legislation of the      ,order was  
before the ,house of ,lords1 the ,bishop
 of ,oxford      7in ,committee7 made an
 objection to the ,lectures on account  
of the ,authorship1 but the ,unity      
refused to withdraw them1      and they 

are in use to this day4 ,the objections 
of this      nature made in some        
instances by the ,press have been       
inoperative where the people have been  
concerned4  ,in the present structure of
 ,english political society1 to preserve
 the ability to be imprisoned is        
necessary to usefulness4 ,when the      
associations of home have twined        
themselves around the feelings--after   
long industry and patient frugality have
 surrounded a man with some comforts    
unknown to his youth--few have the      
temper which will part from them and    
walk into a gaol at the call of duty4 ,i
 should think this state the death of   
progress4 ,when1 some time ago1 insuring
 my life in the ,equity ,law ,insurance 
,office1 ,i asked1 before ,i took out my
 policy1 whether it would be forfeited  
if my death was occasioned by           
imprisonment or transportation4 ,the    
,directors naturally asked whether ,i   
was liable to those casualties4 ,i said1
 not particularly liable ,i hoped2 but  

to be able to be imprisoned1 if it      
seemed a duty1 ,i valued as a great     
privilege1 and ,i would not barter my   
right to be imprisoned4 ,i am afraid    
they smiled at my eccentricity1 but they
 assured me that that accident would not
 involve the forfeiture of my           
policy--which ,i then took out4  ,no one
 who reads thus far will1 ,i hope1      
consider me as a candidate for either   
imprisonment or transportation4 ,i have 
too keen an insight into their misery   
for that4 ,but he who pretends to take  
the side of the people ought to see his 
way all through1 and not incur a danger 
he has not weighed1 and not suffer any  
to ascribe to him a virtue he does not  
mean to maintain4  ,if any1 from what ,i
 have just expressed1 or from the       
transactions of this narrative1 shall   
conclude that ,i am disposed to regard  
law-breaking lightly1 they will mistake 
me4 ,respect for the law is an          
intelligent virtue--a sign of fitness   
for freedom so important that none but  

an enemy would obscure the duty or      
weaken the sentiment4 ,if accused1 in   
the matter which led to my ,trial1 of   
breaking the law1 ,i might plead that   
there was no law to break1 and therefore
 ,i could not break one4 ,what is called
 the common law relating to blasphemy is
 a mere caprice1 an opinion interpreted 
by ignorance or sectarian prejudice1 and
 enforced at the call of                
bigotry--malevolent to the humble while 
neutral towards the rich4 ,against this 
tyranny one is obliged to rebel4 ,it is 
disastrous that we should have to set up
 the standard of resistance even in a   
case of this kind1 and the chief        
justification is that a democratic      
government is denied us4 ,had the people
 a voice in making the laws1 the        
breaking of any law would require grave 
justification4 ,men have two lives--a   
private and a public one4 ,conscience is
 the guide of all that relates to       
private duty1 but law is the conscience 
of society1 and it is best when private 

conscience can be subordinate to the    
public conscience4 ,private conscience  
may be the child of selfishness1        
fanaticism1 or vanity1 as well as of the
 greatest purity and intelligence4 ,a   
man1 therefore1 should be careful how he
 places so uncertain a thing above the  
law4 ,if private conscience be more just
 and intelligent than the public        
conscience1 a democratic form of        
government affords peaceful facilities  
whereby it can come into the ascendant4 
,but where these modes are denied1 no   
alternative remains but that of         
rebellion or unconditional and          
indefinite submission4 ,resistance to   
the law1 however1 or to what is tacitly 
accepted by the majority as law1 is1    
under any form of government1 so        
pernicious an example1 is so liable to  
be abused1 so liable to unfit the people
 who learn the lesson1 for submission to
 legitimate authority1 that these cases 
demand the strictest surveillance before
 they receive the sanction of a friend  

of the people4 ,in all instances in     
which conscience is the ground of       
resistance1 the wrong done to conscience
 ought to be clear1 deep1 and momentous1
 and the necessity which obliges the    
claims of private conscience to be put  
above the laws ought to be made so      
evident that the sentiment of freedom   
shall not deteriorate that of legitimate
 and honourable allegiance4 ,if the     
political moral of this narrative be    
therefore drawn with discrimination1 we 
may do little harm even if mistaken in  
the belief that the prevalence of our   
views of life may be a public good2 and 
if this belief prove to be right in the 
main1 we do what reformers are said     
often to forget--we make a past to which
 the future may refer for authority and 
instruction4       ,then not 'in vain6' 
,even obscurest weeds      ,nourish the 
roots of fruitfulest fair trees      ,so
 from our ,fortune  loathed ,hope       
proceeds      ,the experience that may  
base high victories499            99 ,w4

 ,j4 ,union4  ,what 'our views' are this
 is not the place to state2 as to some  
it would seem that under the pretext of 
a plea for ,free ,utterance1 sentiments 
were obtruded upon the reader he was not
 forewarned to expect4 ,i therefore     
limit myself to saying 7and that only   
for the sake of others who will decline 
to concede free utterance until they    
know what has to be uttered7 that       
whoever sees in ,atheism simply the     
development of a negation1 sees but half
 the truth4 ,even in this respect       
7supposing existing theological systems 
to be erroneous7 ,atheism has the merit 
of clearing the way for ,pure           
,moralism--which is the other half1 or  
positive ground of ,atheism4 ,the latest
 writers on the ,philosophy of ,religion
 resolve religion into ,dependance2 by  
which its modern theory at length       
coincides with its ancient practice4 ,we
 venture to think that this is not      
salutary teaching4 ,life should be      
self-reliant4 ,it seems to us that the  

light of ,nature and the experience of  
man are anterior to the dogmas of       
,priests1 and are the sources whence    
guidance and duty independently spring4 
,the ,priest breaks in upon the         
integrity of life1 and diverts its      
course4 ,he says he makes an addition to
 our knowledge--we do not find it so4   
,he professes to show us the hidden     
mysteries of the future--we fail to see 
them4 ,he simply encumbers us1 and we   
pray him to stand aside4 ,the           
responsibility of our course is our own 
and not his1 and we have a right to be  
left free4 ,rejecting his advices1 he   
proclaims that we reject truth1 honour1 
justice1 love4 ,this is his error or the
 retaliation of his disappointment4 ,we 
appeal to the candid and the impartial  
to judge between us4 ,we respect        
,theology as the science of man's       
destiny1 and regret that it bears no    
fruits for us3 but this is not our      
fault2 and we therefore attempt to solve
 the problem of life for ourselves4 ,our

 progress already counts some distinct  
steps4 ,we have recast the practice of  
controversy3 we forbid to ourselves to  
suspect evil motives1 or to impute      
insincerity to others2 the doubtful act 
we propose to judge by evidence alone1  
and to put the best construction on the 
dubious word4 ,thus we annihilate       
,antagonism1 the eldest foe of          
,progress1 by imposing laws on impulse4 
,our search in every system is directed 
after moral truth2 and1 less exacting   
than the ,christian1 we accept it1      
whether given by ,inspiration1 confirmed
 by ,miracle1 attested by ,prophecy1 or 
not4 ,probity of word and act may be    
securely based on the intelligence and  
refinement of mankind--and this we      
labour to enforce4 ,to restrict human   
expectation to that which is            
ascertainable by reason1 must have the  
effect of concentrating attention on    
humanity1 and intensifying interest in  
human exertions4 ,in ,solidarity we find
 the encouragement to public endeavour1 

and we sum up private duty in ,honour1  
which is respecting the ,truth2 in      
,morality1 which is acting the ,truth2  
and in ,love1 which is serving the      
,truth4  ,,the ,,end4       ,holyoake   
,brothers1 ,printers1      #c4 ,queen's 
,head-passage1      ,paternoster-row4