Difference between revisions of "William Nolan"
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Sergeant of Police at Ballarat in 1854. | Sergeant of Police at Ballarat in 1854. | ||
+ | |||
+ | :SUPREME COURT. | ||
+ | :CRIMINAL SESSIONS. | ||
+ | :Friday, January 19th, 1855. ... | ||
+ | :THE BALLARAT RIOTS. | ||
+ | :[[George Goddard]], [[John Chapman]], [[Benjamin Ewing]], [[Duncan McIntyre]], [[William Bryant]], and [[Donald Campbell]] were arraigned and pleaded not guilty to a charge of sedition and riot. Bryant was defended by Mr. Michie ; Goddard, Ewings, M'Intyre, and Campbell were defended by Mr Cope and Mr Prendergast ; the prisoner Chapman was undefended. | ||
+ | :The information embraces four counts — the first charges the defendants with conspiring with other persons to the amount of fifty altogether, and unlawfully, maliciously, and seditiously meeting and assembling themselves together for the purpose of exciting discontent and disaffection in the minds of the leige subjects of the Queen, and for the purpose of moving them to hatred and contempt of the Government and Constitution of the colony. Second — Riot and assault on [[Wm. Nolan]], sergeant of police. Third count, charges them with being an unlawful assembly. Fourth count is one for a common assault on Nolan. | ||
+ | :The Solicitor General opened the case to the jury, remarking that this was an information laid against the traversers for certain transactions that occurred at Ballaarat on the 30th of November last. To make this intelligible to the jury, it would be necessary to refer to certain events that occurred the day before. A meeting was convened to be held at [[Bakery Hill]], at Ballaarat ; a placard was extensively circulated, headed "Down with the license fee" "Down with despotism." "Who so base to be a slave." And a request at the bottom that diggers would bring their licenses, as they might be wanted. At this meeting very strong language was used, a flag was displayed, and a large number of gold licences were burnt, as if to show that those who possessed them and burnt them were determined to be on the same footing as those who had none. The meeting on the 30th was a continuation of the one held on the 29th. On the 30th, the Government officers went to collect licenses from the diggers; those who had no licenses were arrested, but rescued by the crowd; and the character of the meeting was that with a display of force to intimidate those who had to collect the licenses, to meet this, the first count in the information was laid. The learned Solicitor-Solicitor thought a court of justice was not the place to discuss a question of politics, as to whether gold diggers should or should not be made to pay a tax for the use of the lands where they discovered their treasures , this would be most un-becoming, either in himself or the jury ; it was not a jury's province, neither did he believe they were competent without much time and inquiry to deal with the question. Skilful politicians had made these laws, and they must be obeyed until they were constitutionally altered. A jury could not, ought not, to weigh the righteous nature of these laws — among many conflicting circumstances; a law, if considered impolitic, must be changed by lawful means, not by brute force, under a pretence of liberty: the majority compelling the minority by constraint to act with them, — this was not liberty, but licentiousness. They, as jurymen, were bound upon their solemn oaths to decide as to the facts adduced in evidence — not the expediency or the in-expediency of the measure; neither was it their province to say if the gold commissioners had acted right or not in collecting the licences on the day in question. It was, however, for them to saw what was law upon the subject — but this they would take from the learned Judge, and then they would say if the prisoners transgressed that law or not; that was the jury's simple duty. During the riot on the 30th there were shouts and loud cries uttered, and large stones, bottles, and other missiles thrown, and shots fired. The riot act was read, and the troops were called out. The defendants were now proceeded against only as rioters, although if people remained in assembly after the riot act had been read they laid themselves open to a far severer form of indictment. The learned counsel then defined the law upon the subject, as quoted by Mr. Baron Alderson in his charge to the grand jury delivered at the Monmouth Assizes in the Summer of 1839, in the case of Regina v Vincent, reported in the 9th volume of Carrington and Payne's reports, page 93, and said among the police injured was sergeant William Nolan; he was endeavoring to take a prisoner into custody, was knocked down, much beaten and illtreated, and certain of the prisoners partook in this outrage. The learned counsel then addressed himself to the bearing of the various counts in the information, and called as the first witness —...<ref>The Argus, 20 January 1855.</ref> | ||
==Post 1854 Experiences== | ==Post 1854 Experiences== | ||
+ | |||
+ | In the 1855 Goldfields Commission [[Charles Wood]] testified made a complaint against Sergeant Nolan. | ||
==See also== | ==See also== |
Latest revision as of 19:07, 18 May 2024
Contents
Background
Goldfields Involvement, 1854
Sergeant of Police at Ballarat in 1854.
- SUPREME COURT.
- CRIMINAL SESSIONS.
- Friday, January 19th, 1855. ...
- THE BALLARAT RIOTS.
- George Goddard, John Chapman, Benjamin Ewing, Duncan McIntyre, William Bryant, and Donald Campbell were arraigned and pleaded not guilty to a charge of sedition and riot. Bryant was defended by Mr. Michie ; Goddard, Ewings, M'Intyre, and Campbell were defended by Mr Cope and Mr Prendergast ; the prisoner Chapman was undefended.
- The information embraces four counts — the first charges the defendants with conspiring with other persons to the amount of fifty altogether, and unlawfully, maliciously, and seditiously meeting and assembling themselves together for the purpose of exciting discontent and disaffection in the minds of the leige subjects of the Queen, and for the purpose of moving them to hatred and contempt of the Government and Constitution of the colony. Second — Riot and assault on Wm. Nolan, sergeant of police. Third count, charges them with being an unlawful assembly. Fourth count is one for a common assault on Nolan.
- The Solicitor General opened the case to the jury, remarking that this was an information laid against the traversers for certain transactions that occurred at Ballaarat on the 30th of November last. To make this intelligible to the jury, it would be necessary to refer to certain events that occurred the day before. A meeting was convened to be held at Bakery Hill, at Ballaarat ; a placard was extensively circulated, headed "Down with the license fee" "Down with despotism." "Who so base to be a slave." And a request at the bottom that diggers would bring their licenses, as they might be wanted. At this meeting very strong language was used, a flag was displayed, and a large number of gold licences were burnt, as if to show that those who possessed them and burnt them were determined to be on the same footing as those who had none. The meeting on the 30th was a continuation of the one held on the 29th. On the 30th, the Government officers went to collect licenses from the diggers; those who had no licenses were arrested, but rescued by the crowd; and the character of the meeting was that with a display of force to intimidate those who had to collect the licenses, to meet this, the first count in the information was laid. The learned Solicitor-Solicitor thought a court of justice was not the place to discuss a question of politics, as to whether gold diggers should or should not be made to pay a tax for the use of the lands where they discovered their treasures , this would be most un-becoming, either in himself or the jury ; it was not a jury's province, neither did he believe they were competent without much time and inquiry to deal with the question. Skilful politicians had made these laws, and they must be obeyed until they were constitutionally altered. A jury could not, ought not, to weigh the righteous nature of these laws — among many conflicting circumstances; a law, if considered impolitic, must be changed by lawful means, not by brute force, under a pretence of liberty: the majority compelling the minority by constraint to act with them, — this was not liberty, but licentiousness. They, as jurymen, were bound upon their solemn oaths to decide as to the facts adduced in evidence — not the expediency or the in-expediency of the measure; neither was it their province to say if the gold commissioners had acted right or not in collecting the licences on the day in question. It was, however, for them to saw what was law upon the subject — but this they would take from the learned Judge, and then they would say if the prisoners transgressed that law or not; that was the jury's simple duty. During the riot on the 30th there were shouts and loud cries uttered, and large stones, bottles, and other missiles thrown, and shots fired. The riot act was read, and the troops were called out. The defendants were now proceeded against only as rioters, although if people remained in assembly after the riot act had been read they laid themselves open to a far severer form of indictment. The learned counsel then defined the law upon the subject, as quoted by Mr. Baron Alderson in his charge to the grand jury delivered at the Monmouth Assizes in the Summer of 1839, in the case of Regina v Vincent, reported in the 9th volume of Carrington and Payne's reports, page 93, and said among the police injured was sergeant William Nolan; he was endeavoring to take a prisoner into custody, was knocked down, much beaten and illtreated, and certain of the prisoners partook in this outrage. The learned counsel then addressed himself to the bearing of the various counts in the information, and called as the first witness —...[1]
Post 1854 Experiences
In the 1855 Goldfields Commission Charles Wood testified made a complaint against Sergeant Nolan.
See also
Further Reading
Blake, Gregory, To Pierce the Tyrant's Heart, Australian Military History Publications, 2009.
References
- ↑ The Argus, 20 January 1855.
External links