28th February 1816: The Home Office replies to John Allison about the recent Luddite attack

28th Feby 1816

Jos: Allison Esqr
Huddersfield

I am directed by Lord Sidmouth to acknowledge the Rect of your letter of the 26 last stating by [direction] of Sir Jos: Radcliffe the particulars of an Act of outrage which has lately been committed near Huddersfield – similar to what happened several years ago in that neighbourhood—His Lordship is much concerned to find Symptoms of the same mischievous Spirit which prevailed [previously] should having again manifested itself and there does not seem to be [given] your Letter [sufficient] reason for supposing that a new System of disturbance

His Lordship is inclined to hope though that this Statement does not warrant the Conclusion that a new System of disturbance & outrage again exists — at the Same time He is much concerned to find that any Symptom and His [Lordship] thinks it of the utmost Consequence that it should be understood not only that the public attention is drawn to this Individual act of outrage — but that the Persons whose property is likely to Suffer in the Event of a renewal of the Framebreaking System – are determined to defend their property agt any Attack that may be made upon it – and to render material Assistance to each other for this important object of it should be necessary—

—Lord S. relies with the greatest Confidence in the Active [Exertions] of Sir Jos: Radcliffe in the Services of a local Magistrate [should] again become requisite - and He has no doubt that both Mr. Cartwright of Rawfolds & yourself will be zealously employed at all times in rendering Him Support

26th February 1816: The Huddersfield solicitor John Allison informs the Home Secretary about the latest Luddite attack in the West Riding

Huddersfield 26th February 1816

My Lord

It is with extreme concern that I have to report to your Lordship, that a system of disturbance & outrage similar to that which raged in this part of the Country 4 years ago, has again made its appearance – and by the direction of Sir Josh Radcliffe Baronet, I transmit the Copy of an Examination taking this Morning before him – In addition to the facts which it discloses, I have learnt that Roberts who has used the Improved Machinery ever since the Special Commission for this County, has been frequently threatened an abused of late by persons whom he did not know, but who appeared to be Cloth Dressers – that when the attack was made upon it, as stated in the Examination, no Fire Arms were used – no Guard stood over him, or any part of his family – no Shouting or threats were used at the time, nor did the perpetrators com into the House as formerly was the case—. I beg leave also to add for your Lordship’s Information, that in my humble Opinion, there is no apparent scarcity of work in the neighbourhood to justify any such proceedings, and that provisions are very cheap; it may therefore be hoped that the present outrage may proceed more from private malice against this Individual than from any determined Spirit of Opposition to the improved Machinery; altho’ it is much to be lamented that that Spirit is merely smothered but not destroyed—. I have made most of the leading persons who have adopted these Improvements acquainted with this Movement, & have every reason to expect they will use precautionary measures, & will actually Defend their property as they ought to do — I have particular Assurances from Mr. Wm Cartwright of Rawfolds, and several others, that they will be prepared to meet all future movements, in case any shall be made & there shall be no supineness to prevent these disgraceful proceedings on the part of

My Lord,
your Lordships very obt & faithfl hble St
Jno. Allison &c

16th January 1813: The Huddersfield solicitor, John Allison, writes to General Acland about the mood in the town

Huddersfield 16th January ‘13

General

Mr. Lloyd has left me & will only return to make up the Accounts—In answer to your polite note I beg to say that the feelings of the people here in consequence of the late Trials appear to have subsided into a dead calm, & I conceive that all will be perfectly tranquil unless it should be a few boisterous & ill tempered old Women who may perhaps vow a little vengeance for a short time, but that will soon abate—. As I was returning from Mr. Radcliffe’s, where I was when your favor arrived, I heard a few Croppers & an old Woman weighing the Justice of the late Judgments, the old Woman declared she wondered the whole of the Judges & Court, & particularly your humble Servant, were not afraid that the [Devil] would come & fly away with them all – just at that instant I came in sight, & nothing more passed, but all were mute—This was the case in two or three instances both as I went & returned, for I purposely went past the Dwellings of many of the Culprits. It is possible that some Irritation will prevail for some time, but it will soon be over, & I am confident that the disturbances will not be repeated.

I do not expect that any of the friends of the unfortunate Men (save one or two), can afford to bring the bodies to Hudd and I conceive the Croppers will not subscribe for the purpose for they all here appear ashamed of themselves – We will be on the look out at the Funerals should be take place here.

My professional Adversary, Blackburn, reports it that we have not yet got the Murderers — & that some of the Rawfolds Men were Innocent! I can account for this kind of unbecoming language in no other way than as coming from a Man (certainly not a Gentleman) whose every attempt has been completely failed, & has been turned to his own disappointment and exposure! Even his own Counsel at York seemed ashamed of the paltry Defences which Duty had imposed upon them to make—.

I have [etc]
Jno Allison

[To] M. General Acland &c. &c.

13th January 1813: Henry Hobhouse dismisses the solicitors Lloyd & Allison to prevent them stirring up further trouble

York
Jan. 13. 1813.

Sir,

I deem it right to lose no Time in informing you that in Consequence of a Conversation which I had yesterday Evening, with Gen. Maitland, in which he stated his Intention to be to try whether the severe Example made at this place together with the Amnesty proposed on the part of the Government would not unable him to withdraw the Troops from the disturbed parts, & leave those parts to recover tranquility, from their Disaffection, I conceived it would be right to prevent the Effect of these measures being endangered by any Indiscretion on the part of the Attornies who have been employed for the Crown at Huddersfield. I have therefore taken upon myself to inform Mr. Lloyd & Mr. Allison that they cease to be employed from this Time, & that they are to take no Step whatever on the part of Government without express orders, for which however they are at liberty to apply, if they shall see occasion. If Lord Sidmouth should disapprove of these Directions, it will be easy to correct my Error; whereas any Contravention of the Views of His Majesty’s Ministers on the opposite side would not be so easily set right. I therefore hope I shall at last stand excused for the Orders I have given.

Inclosed I send you a Copy of a Letter from Mr. Cartwright to Mr. Blackburn the Attorney for the Prisoners, written in answer to an Application to sign a Petition, which is probably a Duplicate of one that I am informed went up to Lord Sidmouth last Night.

I am now on the point of quitting this Place, & remain

Sir
Your obedient
humble Servant
H. Hobhouse

[To] J Beckett Esq

31st October 1812: The Huddersfield Solicitor, John Allison, denies George Mellor has confessed & tells Acland of more arrests

Dear General

I have not heard of Mellors having made any confession of guilt, nor do I think it at all likely as I believe he will die as hardened a Villain as ever disgraced a Gallows

Eight were committed last night and are gone off to York this morning — Three will be remanded for further Examination — and two more are taken up — Two have fled & I think they are gone to Dublin — Can you Sir or General Maitland assist me in having sought for and secured in Dublin, or  must I send to Government?

I have the honor to remain General
Yours most faithfully

Jno. Allison
Huddersfield Saturday Morning [31st October 1812]

[To] M. General Acland &c. &c.

29th October 1812: The Huddersfield Solicitor, John Allison, explains how the authorities got Benjamin Walker to confess

Sir,

In compliance with your Letter of this morning I have the Honor to inclose you a Copy of Walkers Examination.

There were certainly Inducement held out to Walker both by myself and Mr. Radcliffe through the medium of Walker's own relations to make the Confession and he assuredly made it upon the Faith of those Inducements, he did this too at a time when we had no evidence against either himself or Thorpe or Smith and when he had been several days in confinement for examination. It was thought at that time both by Mr. Radcliffe and myself and Mr. Lloyd who was there with me as well as by General Acland that it was the most adviseable method. Mr. Lloyd has since taken and placed Walker in a place of perfect Safety and no doubt he will have reported to you thereon. The person to whom Mr. Lloyd alludes as having been properly examined is Joseph Sowden a Copy of whose Examination I have already transmitted to Lord Sidmouth. I shall I have no Doubt confirm Walker in a very many leading circumstances and am doing my endeavours so to do and have no Doubt of succeeding. William Hall will confirm Sowden’s Testimony as to the Oath and Sowden’s Confession was quite voluntary on his part and without the least Inducement or Threat indeed the Circumstance which Sowden revealed was never dreamt of till he disclosed it.

I have the honour also to transmit Copy of the Examination of Robert Robinson a Publican at whose House Smith called soon after the murder and which is confirmatory of Walker in that Circumstance.

I shall be glad to know whether it is likely an Assize will be held prior to the 6th of January and to be favoured with an answer to my former letters relative to Mr. Radcliffes converting part of his Outhousing into a temporary prison. We have now eleven under Examination.

I have &c
(signed) John Allison:
Huddersfield 29th Oct. 1812—

24th October 1812: The Huddersfield solicitor, John Allison, sends information about various cases to the Home Secretary

My Lord,

By the direction of Mr Radcliffe I have the Honor and pleasure to inclose to your Lordship Copies of various Examinations taken before him relative to the Murder of Mr. Horsfall and the very daring attack made upon Mr. Cartwrights Mill as well as on the premises of some others where shearing Frames were used. The persons named in the margin have already been committed and the commitment of others will of course follow. The case of the Murder will be most completely made out; and I lament that Sowden’s Examination which I have the Honor to inclose was not given sooner, as if that had been the case I think we should have brought the matter home to all the four who were concerned in the Murder. Walker had given his Confession of it at a time when we had no Evidence against him – As such I presume we must take care of him; and I look upon him as of sufficient consequence to be put under the care of some one who is in obedience to your Lordship in your Official Situation and your Lordship will please to notify what you wish to be done with regard to him. In the Interim I will see that he is properly secured.

I remain [etc]
Jno Allison

Huddersfield 24th. Oct. 1812.

[To] Lord Sidmouth &c &c

[Written in margin:

George Mellor }
Wm Thorpe }
Thos Smith } Murder

James Haigh }
Jonathan Dean }
George Rigg }
Mark Hill }
Joseph Thornton } Felony

23rd October 1812: The solicitors Lloyd & Allison visit John Wood's cropping shop, and a new informer emerges

John Wood's cropping shop, in a photorgaph before demolition in 1891.

In the evening of Friday 23rd October 1812, the two solicitors at the heart of the opposition to the Luddites in West Yorkshire took the bold step of visiting the workshop that was fast becoming, at least in their minds, the headquarters of Luddism around Huddersfield.

John Lloyd from Stockport and John Allison from Huddersfield visited the workshop of John Wood, the step-father and employer of George Mellor, to question all the others who worked there. Before they left one of the croppers, Joseph Sowden, took Allison to one side: it is not known what was said, but Sowden subsequently swore a statement the following day before Joseph Radcliffe at Milnsbridge House.

Sowden deposed that at 5.00 p.m. on the day of William Horsfall's shooting, James Varley had told him that George Mellor, William Thorpe, Thomas Smith & Benjamin Walker had gone to lie in wait for Horsfall in order to shoot him. He went on to say the he learned of the shooting at 7.00 p.m. from a colleague, William Walker, and that 30 minutes later, he saw George Mellor in Wood's kitchen. A couple of mornings afterwards, Sowden said that William Thorpe had come to him in the workshop and made him swear an oath of secrecy on a Bible:

The purport of it was that if I revealed any thing concerning the Murder of Mr Horsfall that I should be put out of existence and should be pursued with unceasing vengeance to the verge of nature or something to that effect

Sowden said George Mellor came in at the end, and that afterwards, Thorpe brought in Thomas Smith, Benjamin Walker, John Walker, William Walker, William Hall and James Varley - Sowden said that Thorpe made him administer the oath to all of the others on pain of death.

Sowden went on to say that all of those accused of shooting Horsfall had 'related to me the circumstances attending it with a degree of exultation'. His statement does not contain any of those details that he said were related - Lloyd and Radcliffe were clearly satisfied that they had another witness and that was enough.

15th October 1812: The Huddersfield Solicitor, John Allison, informs the Home Secretary about Luddites collecting money for those wounded at Rawfolds Mill

My Lord

By the direction of Mr. Radcliffe I am to inform your Lordship that John Bates whose original Examination has already been transmitted informs that when the sum of £10..6..6 mentioned in that Examination was paid over to Mark Hill it was paid to him for the purpose of being distributed amongst the Families of the Men who were wounded at Rawfolds mill that is at Mr. Cartwrighs Fight that Benjamin Hinchliffe the Drawer at Holmfirth paid 8..14..6 of that money — John Schofield now a prisoner in York Castle for shootg at John Hinchliffe paid 11 [shillings] and John Bates our Informer paid [£]1..1[s] [Total] £10..6..6

This money was paid over to Mark Hill on the Sunday following the attack on Mr. Cartwright and Hill has been examined before Mr. Radcliffe as to the application of that money but he gives so very vague and unsatisfactory account of it that Mr. Radcliffe has remanded him for further Examination in order to give an opportunity to ask your Lordships Opinion as to the propriety of committing or releasing the Man—It appears that the money was evidently collected and applied for the purposes of comforting and assisting men who had been guilty of Felony in attacking Mr. Cartwrights mill! Benjamin Hinchliffe who paid the £8..14..6 appears to be equally implicated with Mark Hill for he must have been aware for what purposes it was collected and was to be applied—Bates to whose first Examination I beg leave to refer your Lordship states that the subscription was for the wounded men and that it was paid over to Mark Hill who was to dispose of it as he thought proper but that it was perfectly understood to be for the Men so wounded — Mr. Radcliffe request that your Lordship will please to favor him with the opinion of some of His Majesty's Law Advisers for his Government in this matter as it is by no means the wish of Mr. Ratcliffe to deprive any of his Majesty's Subjects of a moments liberty unnecessarily however zealous he may be to detect the Disturbers of the public peace

I have the honor to remain my Lord
your Lordships most faithful and obt Servt

John Allison
Huddersfield 15th October ’12.

[To] Lord Viscount Sidmouth &c &c

15th September 1812: The Huddersfield solicitor, John Allison, informs the Home Secretary of arrests in the West Riding

My Lord

By the directions of Mr. Ratcliffe our Magistrate and to save him the trouble of writing, as his hand trembles so much, I have the honor to inform you that he has this Morning committed Batley Fisher & Lumb three more of the Men who were concerned with Swallow in the robbery at Moxon's and who were apprehended on the Information of Earl Parkin whose Examination I had the honor to transmit you yesterday — These Men appear to have kept the neighbourhood where they resided, in a state of continual alarm, and seem to have been nothing but a set of desperate Housebreakers who have taken advantage of the times—. The persons robbed are so terrified as not to be at all inclined to exert themselves or to take any active part in the apprehension or detection of such Villains. I am sorry to inform your Lordship that Norton the Leader of these Banditti is not yet taken, but Green one of his most daring accomplices is taken, and is remanded till Thursday next when he is sure to be committed as we have a very strong case against him—

I am directed by Mr. Ratcliffe further to acquaint your Lordship that John Baines Senior John Baines Junr. Zachariah Baines George Duckworth Charles Milnes alias Gledhill & William Blakebrough all of Halifax were also this Morning committed by Mr. Ratcliffe — Old Baines for administering, & the others for being present at and aiding in the administering an illegal Oath to John McDonald (a person sent there by General Maitland or General Acland) and the two last named Prisoners were also charged with stealing Lead to make Bullets—

I have the honor to transmit to your Lordship herewith, copies of Examinations taken on those occasions and back to say that Mr. Lloyd from Stockport is with me; and we are and have been for some time past doing all in our power to detect the disturbers of the peace in this neighbourhood and hope to succeed—. I fear there are many nests of Thieves yet to be broke into as well some secret Institutions amongst the Croppers dangerous to the peace of the County, if not to the kingdom

I have [etc]
Jno. Allison
Huddersfield 14. September 1812

N.B. Since writing the above last night after post time, Mr. Ratcliffe has taken the inclosed Examination against John Crosland for abusing the Royal family & declaring he was twisted in — I attended his Examination both yesterday & to day in hopes I should be able to get some thing out of him, but have not succeeded — Mr. Ratcliffe as therefore taken Recognizances for his Appearance at York in case His Majesty's government should deem the matter worthy of further notice from any salutary motives, and for examples sake—

JA.

15th Sep. ‘12

[To] The Rt. Honble Lord Sidmouth &c. &c.—

25th July 1812: The Huddersfield solicitor John Allison writes to the Stockport solicitor John Lloyd about Joseph Barrowclough

Dear Sir

I am extremely sorry that a Cause of importance will prevent me from giving you the meeting at W. Radcliffe's as I promised—. I trust you will be able to do some good with Barraclough—I can say this, that (whatever may be sayd with regard to his Insanity, which I understand will be attempted) he is no more Insane or deranged and I am—I have known him many years – indeed he has been many years one of my Corporals, & altho’ he never was a good Soldier, yet I look upon him as being at the bottom of that System which has caused so much confusion & terror in the neighbourhood of Holmfirth, and I am sure he is more Rogue than Fool!—I would recommend you to hold out every inducement to George Beaumont (Chester) for I look upon him as are most likely Man to be concerned in Horsfall’s business—& if he be not, he is the most likely Man I know, to be employed in worming himself into the Secrets of the Luddites—He is the more likely to be employed in case he gets his discharge as knowing nothing; but if he does know any thing, the best way is for him to give his information which you may promised to keep an entire secret & let him be committed to take his Trial as the others, by way of protection to him! But if he would enter into your views & into the pay of Government I would go home & give me every secret Information, unknown to every Soul on Earth but our two selves, it strikes me he would be most likely & a most useful person, because he could worm himself into every Secret!—.

I fear I shall be detained here till next Wednesday — If you should succeed in doing any good on Monday, it will rejoice me greatly to be honoured with a line from you here – Secrecy ought to be, & must be, the Order of the Day, else no good will be done!

Yours truly
Jno. Allison

George Inn Pavement
York 25th July ‘12

[To] J.Lloyd Esqr.