The Walsall anarchists: trapped by the police : innocent - Libcom

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The Walsall anarchists: trapped by the police : innocent men in penal servitude : the truth
about the Walsall plot.
Author(s): Nicoll, David J.?.
Source: LSE Selected Pamphlets, (1892)
Published by: LSE Library
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/60215295 .
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m
THE
\->
Walsall
/\r\ara\iSra.
TRAPPED BY THE POLICE.
Innocent Men in Penal Servitude.
The Truth about the Walsall Plot.
N.B.—These Revelations Were suppressed by the police
When they raided the Offices of the " GommorvWeal,"
on April 18th, 1892.
PRICE ONE PENNY.
•*jm
Printed and Published by
DAVID NICOLL, at 194, Clarence Road, Kentish Town,
London, N.W.
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By Peter Kropotkine.
AN APPEALT O TUB YOUNG. Translatefdr omt he French. Piice let
a scienTtihfmiemc a ons.e t loquenant dn oblaep peatol t heg enerouems otionevs eip ennebdj |U
WAR. Reprintedb y the " Anarchist."
Av erys easonabalned in structilvitet lew ork Wiittenfo rL aR evolmt any
yearas goi, t stills hedas lighot nt hei nsatiabwlea r-hunogfet ih ee xploitinCgl asses
EXPROPRIATION.A n AnarchisEt ssay.
chantdy"i Bsalipnpfdae ;ia tMih t aakkreeos f olimgfho itJ 'M usatkicew"e ayf ors cience;G racioupsl easuraen d
THE PLACEo f ANARCHISMin SOCIALISTIECV OLUTIONP. riceli
LAW AND AUTHORITY.2 4 pp. Piice Id.
pwehritcylhta,a wkesaT usb hpoeoum gnittao sivenseltfu ro pnm pmaotesnli ano uwftcf ,a rsa cibmttouhaeurrp eetes ei e dlna lawelntasie neassldsnaa , wd pm ap, nlitysdhda eeummth.e oarni;t o;ly aua wrnsdsa a buotuhpto rnoj£t^ gj|
REVOLUTIONARGYO VERNMENTP. rice id.
ANAthRisCs tHm"Ig SSgtTljrMeo u ugOw gfRil lSelfA ointL hdaIa Tj ato Ylylmg .3 ie6aa ylpti vpetie.ht haPinsari linccyheot Ihvdie.ne rlgfsl eoc wanligin figev; e a" n db es ureth atin
ANARCHIST-COMMUNISMIts. Basisa ndP rinciple. 36 pp. Piice
ANARCHISMin SOCIALE VOLUTION.P rice Id.
By William Morris. LI
MONOPLYo,r HOWL ABOURI S ROBBED. Piice id. k
TRUE and FALSE SOCIETY, id.
THE REWARDo f LABOUR. A Dialogue. Id.
NEWS fromN OWHERE. A UtopianR omance. Cloth,i s. 6d.
SIG"N WSo hf iCcsH,D AemNGocEra. Ctaso,n ndtS aoinciina"gli H stosw,",'w Fee LudivaelE a nngdl IaJnodw,'"w ' Te mhei HghotLp eivse p
Civilisation,""T he Aimso f Art," "Useful Woik versusU selessT oil
"Dawno f a New Epoch." 202 pp.. with pieface,4 s. 6d.
ART and SOCIALISM.3 d.
MISCELLANEOUS.
THE FRENCHR EVOLUTION.B y E. BalfortB ax. Pjice2 s. 6d.
GODWIN'PSO LITICALJU STICE: On Property. Editedb y H. S Sail?
Piice 2s. 6d.
OUTLOOKFS ROMT HE NEW STANDPOINT. By E. Balfoit
Price2 s. 6rd.
ANARCHY. By EnricoM alatesta.P riceI d.
A TALKA BOUTA NARCHISTC OMMUNISMbe tweenT woW orkeis.
EnricoM alatesta. Piice Id.
A LABOURD AY MANIFESTO: TheS courgeo f Capitalisman dt he bieal!-|
downo f Democraciyn the UnitedS tates. Piice Id.
EVOLUTIONan d REVOLUTION. By EliseeB eclus. Id.
REVOLUTIONARSYT UDIES. 32 pp. Price2 d.
REVOLUTIONARGY OVERNMENTP. rice Id.
THE CRIMESO F GOVERNMENTB. y J. Sketchley. Price2 d.
Anyo f thesew illb e sent,o n receipto f Stamps,b y DAVID NICOI^
l^CkueuceKoruhKenti^^
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THE WALSALL ANARCHISTS.
the or the Truth about
Trapped by Police,
1
the Walsall Plot.
I.-THE SKETGH OF JHE BOJflB.
Romancies not deady et eveni n thisa ge of matter-of-factI. t is still
aroundu s—ise verywhere.Q uitt lie narrowp atha s chalkedo ut by Pods-
nap and Co., the properc ommerciaelx istenceo f rising,s having,a nd
startingp unctualltyo the Citye verym orninga,n d you will findr omance
on everys ideo f you. Romancae nd noveltyt herea re,t houghs ometimes
the delightfuvl isionc omest o an abruptt erminationch, angings uddenly
likea lovelyf acei n an opiumv isiont, o somethinhgo rriblae ndd evilish.
Thisw as the fate of somef riendso f ours,w hod reamedof regenera¬
ting the worlda, nd foundt hemselvest,h ankst o the machinationosf a
polices py,d oomedto a longs entenceo f penals ervitude. Let us tell this
stranges toryo f modernli fe. The facts are remarkableen ought hough
true.
Wew ill beginb y relatinga fewf actsc oncerninag prominenatc tori n
the affair—Au gusteC oulon. Conlonc amei ntot he Socialismt ovemenitn
1S90; joining the old SocialistL eague,w hent hat bodyw as in Great
QueenS treet. He had previousltya kens omep artw ith a SocialD emo¬
craticS ocietyin Dublinb, ut left that bodya ndw entt o Francew, hereh e
formedso mec onnectiown itht he PossiblisPt arty. Thenceh e camei nto
the movemenitn Englandi,n January1 890. At this timew e saw very
littleo f him at the officeos f the Leaguei n GreatQ ueenS treet; he was
livinga t Notting Hill, and joinedt he NorthK ensingtonb rancho f the
SocialistL eague. Here he poseda s a very violent Anarchist. He
occasionallvyi sitedt he HammersmitBhr ancho f the SocialistL eague,
whereli e chieflyo ccupiedh imselfb y endeavourintgo sell a little French
book " L'IndicateuAr narchiste,c"o ntainingin structioncso ncernintgh e
manufacturoef bombsa ndd ynamite. In Novembe1rS 90a, splito ccurred
in the SocialistL eaguet,h e advancedse ctiont akingt he Journaol f the
League—ThCe ommontrml'—wthiethm .
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Coulonh ad beenc hronicalloyu to f worko vers ince he had been in
England. Whena skedb is occupationh,e wasi n the habito f statingt hat
he wasa professoorf languages. He stated,m oreoveirn, momentosf ex¬
altationt,h at he had been interpretetro the municipaclo unciol f Paii^
At anyr ate,t hish adn ot beenp ermanenetm ploymenatn, dd uringh is stav
in EnglandC, oulonh, is wifea ndf amilyh adb eenm ainlys upportebdy the
generositoyf comrades.A fterl ivings omet imei n NorthK ensingtoanm '
Ilammeismithh,e appeareadt the AutonomicC lub. The real reasono f
his appearancthe erew ast hat he hade xploitedth e otherd istrictssu fficient¬
ly, and therew as no moret o be got : but he hada veryd ifferentta le to
tell to ourf oreignc omrades.A ccordintgo tinss toryh, e hadb eene xpelled
fromt he HammersmiStho cialisSt ociety( to whichh e had neverb elonged)
forh is devotionto Anarchism.O nrf oreignc omradebse lievedth is artless
tale,a ndr eceivedh imw ith all the honoudr ue to a martyirn the cause.
Coulonsa wh is opportunityT. he foreignA narchistws erej ust startinga n
Anarchisstc hooflo rt he benefito f LouiseM ichel. Louisec ouldn ot speak
any languageb ut her own; but herew as a gentlemanw ho coulds peak
severali,n cludingE nglish. Hisa idw ouldb e invaluablien then ewp io ject.
He was out of work, "badg reata bilities,c"l aimedto havee nrichedo ur
literaturbe y thep ublicatioonf a Krenchg rammara,n d had even been a
professoirn an Irishs chooul ntilh e hadt he sackf orh is ''opinions."H ere
was a man to help LouiseM icheli n carryingo n the newe stablishment.
It is true therew as but little moneyt, he post beinga lmosta voluntary
one; but meno f Coulon'esm inenvt irtuess coni the veryi dea of such a
baset hinga s gold. " He wasw illingto sacrificeh imselfh, is wife,a nd his
childrenfo rt he goodo f the cause.'' lie wasa ppointetdo to assistL ouise
Michela, nd throughh is "abilities"s oonb ecamen, ot onlyd irectorb, ut
hadt he entireb usinesos f the establishmenint his hands, lie managed
everythingr,e ceiveda ll moniesa, ndh is namea ppearedin advertisements
and circularsa s prominentlays that of Louise Michelh erself. His
positiona t the schoopl ut him into communicatiwonit h all the groupsi n
the countrya, ndt heyn aturallylo okedu ponh ima s a personto be trusled.
He wasa s advancedas ever,—"thpe resents ystemw ast o be destroyeadt
once,a ndr obberayn dd ynamitwe eret o be employeads methods."
Well,a fterC oulonh adb eena t his newp osta few weeksh e confided
to met hat he did not see howA narchismwa s to be obtainede xcept by
H.bbery.I wasv eryh ardu p at the time,a mi doubtlessh e thoughtt he
suggestionw ouldb e tempting; but I tookv eryl ittle noticeo f it, and he
didn ot pursuet hes ubjectf urther. Buta t this timeh e mets omeoneel se
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whou nfortunatewlya sm oree asilya lluredb y him. Ourc omradeC harles,
t was.l ike so manyo thersin Englando, ut of employmenatn, di n a desper¬
ate mood. He metw ith Conlona nd listenedt oo readilyto the tempter.
Coulonb ad money; whetherf romt he policeo, rf romt he funds of the
schoolI, do not knowb, ut he gaveC harlesso mea ssistance. Charleso, ne
I of the noblestf ellowsa live, had, like manyo therf ine natures,s uffered
muchf romt he ingratitudoef thosel ie hadb efriendeda,n d was therefore
charmewd ithC oition'"sg enerosity."T his is a man afterm yo wn heart
he thoughta, nd afterh e left Londonf ort he North,h e still kept up a
correspondenwceit h Conlon. Afterl eavingL ondonC, harless tayeda t
Sheffieldfo r somet ime,a nd helpedD r. Creaghet o start The Sheffield
Anarchista, n advancedA narchispt aper,b ut foundn o worku ntil he
went to Walsalalb outt he moutho f July. Even as far backa s this the
policew ered ogginttrh eirv ictim.
It was one summere veningt hat Charlesw alkedi nto the Socialist
Cluba t Walsall. He wask nownb y reputet o the membertsh, rought he
Socialispt apersa, ndt o Deakint,h e secretaroyf the club,t hroughh aving
meth ima t the SocialisCt ongresast Parisi n 1889. Charlews as heartily
welcomeda,n du ltimatelbye camea membeorf the club. As he was un¬
employedo,n e of the memberos f the club,J ohnW estleya, brushm anu¬
facturerm, adeh imb ist raveller. Charlecso ntinueadt this workf ors ome
time till he obtainedth e post of clerka t Mr.G ameson'isr on foundry.
Meanwhilteh,e firsto f Mayi n Francea, ndt he stormyp eriodth at followed
had diivena numbero f refugeesu pon our shoresa, mongt hese being
VictorC ailesa, ndG eorgeLs a Place. VictorC ailesh adt akenp arti n the
trams trike at Bourdea;u he was alsow antedb y the Frenchp olicef or
"
incitingt o incendiarismm,u rdera,n dp illage,"o n the firsto f May,i n his
nativet owno f Nantes GeorgeLs a Placeh ad left Francet o avoidt he
conscription.
NowC oulon.ionr derto makeh imselpf opularundertotook fi ndw orkf or
thesea ndo theru nfortunatesH ew rotet o all the provinciaglr oupas sking
them if they couldf indw orkf or some of the refugees. Coulonk new
.Cailews asa n enthusiasta,n dh e destinedh im for Walsall. He wrotet o
Charleas,s kingh imi f he couldf indw orkf ort wom ena t Walsall. Charles
readt he lettert o Deakina, ndt o the rest of the Walsallc omradeas t the
club. Theya greedto takeo nea ndf indw orkf or him; but to theirs ur¬
priset wow eres ent down. La Placew as unablet o findw orka t his own
tradeo f opera-glasms akinga, nd aftera stayo f somew eeksr eturnedt o
London. Oneo f the memberosf the clubu ndertootko teachC ailesw, ho
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was a stokert, he tradeo f chain-makinga;n dh e wase mployedfo rs omo
timea t this work; but not succeedingW, estleytr iedt o teachh im brush-
making.
" Whent he InternationaClo ngresws ash eld at Brusselsto wardst he
end of Augusta, nd Deakinw as present. On returningh,e went to the
AutonomiCe lub( August2 9th):i t was Saturdany ight,a nd the refresh¬
mentb arw asf ull. Deakinw ass oonc hattingto a groupo f Anarchisttso
"
whomh e wask nown. Someonea skeda fterC harles Ohh e'sa ll right;"
saidD eakin " he'sa t worka t an ironf oundry." " Ohh e willd ot o make
bombsfo ru s" criedC otilonw, how asp resent.
Twom onthsa fterwardas m ysterioules tter,s igned" Degnai,"a nde n¬
closinga sketcho f a bomba, rme d at Walsall.
II.-HOW JO JvlANUF^GTUREP LOTS.
Them ysterioules tterw asa ddressetdo Cailesa, ndi nquiredco ncerning
the Sketcho f the bombw, hethetrh esec ouldb e madei n Walsall. Cailes
knewn eithert he namen, ort he writing; anda s Deakina fterwardsst ated
in hisc onfessiown rotet o A. Coulon1,9 ,F itzroyS treet,F itzroyS quareL, on¬
don. Thea ddresos ft he InternationSacl hoo(l ofw hichC oulown ast heno ne
of thep rincipals)C. oulorne pliedt,h ati t wasa llr ight.D eakinw asi nformed
by Cailesa, nd Charlest,h at the bombsw ere forR ussiab, ut whatw as in
the letterb e did not knowa, s he hadb ut a verys uperficiakln owledgoef
French. Charleas ndC ailese xplainedth e lettert o him. It wasa greedto
get the things madea fter the letterh ad beens hownt o Westleya, nd a
roughw oodenp atternw asm ade. This patternw as afterwardssh ownt o
Ditchfield.I t wasd ecideda fterwardcsu riousleyn ought o get the things
madea t Mr.G ainesonw'sh ereC harlews asw oiking. It seemedth enl ikely
'•
enoughth at\Conlowno uldb e a truep rophewt henh e exclaimed He will
do to makeb ombsf oru s." But Ditchfieldfi rstg ot the patternsm ade.
Whent hesew ered onet heyc hangedth eiri ntentionsa, nda letterw ass ent
to Mr.B ullowsir, onfoundeWr, alsallw, itht he ironp atternws hichh adb een
madeb y a friendo f Ditchfield'sT. heyw erea ccompaniebdy a letter,
signed" GeorgeL aplace" askingf ort he lowestp ricef ort hreed ozenc ast¬
ings,a ccordingto patterns ent. Mr Iiullowds idn otw ant the job, and
demandedw,h ats eemedto himt, he prohibitivper iceo f twentys hillingps er
cwt. A letterw as sent to Mr.B ullowss ayingt hat wouldd o. Bullows
thent ookt hep atternt o a casterb, ut thep atternws eies o unskilfullmy ade,
that the workc ouldn ot be proceedewdi th. He wrotet o " Laplace"a t
"
the addressg iven, 54 GreenL ane."b ut as the postcardc omeb ack
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throughth e deadl ettero fficeh, e didn ot proceedfu rtherw itht he castings.
"
54, GreenL ane"w as Cailesa' ddressb, ut he had removeda,n d left no
directionfo rh is letterst o be sent to. MeanwhileC, oulonw as busyi n
London. It wasi n Octobetrh ath e got holdo f a numbero f younge nthus¬
iasts,( one of whomh ad somek nowledgeo f Chemistrya) nd persuaded
themt o forma ChemistrCy lassi,n whicht he "GreatG odD ynamite"w as
worshippeind s ecret. Thec lassc onsistedof mereb oys,a nd one of them,
M was sent to Mowbraya,n d the writera skingi f wew ouldj oin.
We declinedw ith thanks. Wew eret oo oldb irdst o be caughtw ithc haff.
Coulonw anteda big haul,a nd to securet he editora nd publisheorf the
Commonwenaol,t to mentiono therA narchistws,o uldh ave doubtlesse n¬
titled him to a splendidr ewarda t the handso f his employers.T he big
gamec ouldn ot be caughta, ndt he classw as dropped. To have arrested
halfa dozeny outhso f sixteenw ouldh aveb eenr idiculous.
But Coulonb urnedto distinguishhi mselfh, ep rovidetdh el ad M
of whomh e pretendetdo makea confidanwt, ith twob ottleso, ne contain¬
ingn itrica cida ndt he otherg lycerineso, that hec oulds tartm anufacturing
dynamitoen his owna ccount.
Theo there nthusiasCt medicaslt udentu, ndert he directionof
thea rchc onspiratotrr,a nslated" Most'sR evolutionaWry arfare:" t hisw as
to be privatelpy rinteda ndd istributedto, all the Anarchistgsr oupisn the
country. As this bookc ontainssi mpled irectioncso ncernintgh e manufac¬
tureo f dynamitae ndb ombsw, ec ani magineth at if the policeh adm adea
generarl aidu pont he Anarchistosf the countryh, owt hisc ouldh ave been
utilized.
If a man had a copyo f this booki n his possessionh,e wouldh ave
beena conspiratonro, matterh owi nnocenht e mightb e of thec onspiracayt
Walsall. Anothesri mplee nthusiasitn the countryw asr ecommendetod
collectg ingerb eerb ottles" f orb ombs!' ' The day of Revolutiown asa t
handa, ndi t wasn ecessartyo striket erribleb lowsa t the enemy.
.MeanwhiCleo, ulonw asc ontributintgo the Commonweal.l ie wrote
the '•I nternationNalo tes." Therea rev eryf ewm eni n ourm ovemenwt ho
understansde verall anguagesa,n dC oulonp ossessedth is accomplishment.
He did not possessa polishedli teraryst yle,b ut it wasa s gooda s that of
the averagep enny-a-liner.W hath e lackedin literaryp olishh, e madeu p
for in fire,o r ratherin explosivef orce. He was fore vert alkinga bout
Dynamite.O new ouldt hinkh e livedo n bombs. Like mostg eniusesh, e
preferredto blush unseen. He was not anonymoubs,u t he signedh is
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s
notesA , O, whicha mounttso the samet hing. Onceh e took a fancj to
XX., but anotherc ontributowrh o had adoptedt his signatureo bjected;
he hadn o desiret o be confoundewdi thC oulon.
Herea re a few exampleso f what this contributocra lled Coulon's
ravings: —
"
(1) ComhiomveOnlc, tobe2r4 th,
"
InternationaNl otes.
" OurA ustrianC omradebse att he recordth is time! Dynamitsee ems
to growa s thick there,a s rottenp otatoesi n Ireland. Onlyl ast week.I
mentionetdw ob ombe xplosionisn, Ruchenberagn, dh erea gain,w e recoid
anotheirn fernaal ndd iabolicaml achineth, ath as thrownte rrora ndd ismay
intot he mindso f the capitalisctl ass. Do we evert hinko f the bravem en
whenw e are drinkinga,n d dancingi n ourc lubs? Do we ever inquire
aboutt he lovelyl ittle onesw hoa reh eroi n Londonw, hilstt heirc ourageous
fathersa res hiveringin an Austriand ungeon Stand up! The day is
comingw hent he fight will not be carriedo n by a few,l intb y the multi¬
tudeo f whites lavesf, ort he regeneratioonf mankin—d XX."
Thisi s Coulona s doubleX .
Herei s somethinugn derh is owns ignatur:e—
''CommonweaNl,o v.2 1st,1 891,
"
InternationaNlo tes,B elgium.
"Weh aves till in mindt hata t the beginingo f thisy eai,a largeq uan¬
tity of Dynamitea, full cartloadw, ass eizeda t Searingb y the police. The
authoritiecso uldn ot seizea ll,a ndt hat whichw asl eft in the handso f our
comradehs,a sb eenu seda t differentti mes. Theyh aveb lownu pa police
station— A.C "
(loudo ldD ynamite.
Onem orew illb e enough.
"
CommomroDa)e'c, .. ")th,
"
InternationNalo tes.S pain.
" Outo f the twenty-fivceo mradeas rrestedin Cadizf,o rt hrowinga
bombo n the firsto f May,n ineh aveb eens entencedto termso f imprison¬
ment,f romt hreem onthsto foury ears. No voices peakss o louda s Dyna¬
mite,a ndw ea reg ladt o seei t is gettingi nto usea ll overt he place—A.C."
In the samei ssue,A . O. produceas letter froms ome Frenchc om¬
rades( whetherin the samel ine of businessa s himselfh e doesn ot say).
These,a fter readingt he remarkso f some Anarchisot ratorsa t South
Placew hoo bjectedto toom uchD vnnmitfoi om a discipleo f Coulons.a id.
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9
" It is timet o preventth ese milk-and-watpeero plef roms peakingin the
nameo f Anarchyif we do not wisht o fall into a greaters lumbetrh anw e
arei n already."
CoitionF'sr enchf riends seemt o objectt o anyonet alkingb ut them¬
selves. In this theyr esemblteh e despoticg overnmenwtsh o employm en
liket heirg reata ndg lorioulse ader.
Thereis still anotherg oods torya boutt his greatc onspiratorI. am
an Anarchisatn db elievei n unlimitedfr ee speeche, ven from" milk and
"
watero rators Thisi s whyI , in myc apacityo f editore, nduredC oulon's
"
Dynamiten"o tess o longi n spiteo f remonstrancferso ms everacl omrades.
At last,h oweverm, y patienceg avew ay. At lengthh e sent mei n a para¬
graphc elebratintgh e blowingu p of a cowi n Belgiuma s a greata nd revo¬
lutionarayc t,a nda s I wouldn ot publishi t, Coulonh asn everf orgivenm e.
Thust he greatc onspiracwya sw orkedu p. Violenpt aragraphins The
Commonweaa,l b, ooko n explosiveisn the Press,t he bombsa t Walsalla,
Nitro-Glycerinine the hands of a mere child in London,V oilAt he
wide-spreacdon spiracoyf whichM r.A .Y oungt,h e counciflo rt he Treasury,
spokei n an awe-struckto ne at the commencemeonft t he case. Coulon
understoohdi s trade;I admireh is genius. I exclaimin breathlesasd mir¬
ation" Whata scoundrel!"
111.- jMELUILLE JHE MySTERlOUS.
Buts tillt he questionp uzzlesm e; —HadC oulonth eser emarkablaeb ¬
ilities His literaryc ommunicatiodnos not showt hem,b ut that is no
proof. Therea re plentyo f cleverf ellowsw ho might get up a plot,b ut
cannotw rited ecent Knglish. Otherp eopleb esidem yselfw ho have ob-
servedC onlonc loselyh aven ot discovereadn y lemarkablqeu alities One
of thesep eoplea, well knownS ocialista, novelista, nda sharps tudento f
character,satihda t Coulonst ruckh ima s a manw hosein tellectuafla ciUties
seemeda lmostd estroyebdy a vicioulsi fe,a ,ndt hath e showedn o character¬
istics avet hato f a certaina mounot f lowc unning. Certainlyn,o onee ver
dreamedth at he possessedsu fficienat bilitiest o get up a plot like this.
Didh e merelyc arryo ut the instructionosf a wretcho f greaterc levernes/s
Didh e get anyu sefult ipsf romt he Inspectoorf Police,M elvillew, hoh nrl
hade xperienc.e'
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I have been connectedw ith this dynamiteb usinessf ore ighteen
vears." Melvilleto ldD itchfield.C oulonh ado nlyb eeni n Melville'esm ¬
ploymenfto rt wov ears.a ndh ad.a s fara s I canl earnn, o previoues xperi-
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