THE I.W.W.
Otautau Standard and Wallace County Chronicle, Volume XII, Issue 606, 29 December 1916, Page 2
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THE I.W.W.
END OF THE SYDNEY TRIAL. JUDGE'S STRONG COMMENTS. The closing scene of the remarkable trial of the 12 members of the 1.W.W., who were found guilty of seditious crimes and conspiracy, came last week, when Mr Justice Pi-ing delivered sentence upon the prisoners. The prisoners having all made "speeches from the dock" of varying length, in which they posed as martyrs to "capitalism" and deniad their guilt, the Judge passed sentence. In doing so he said : — " Each of you prisoners has condemned the verdict of the jury. I have only to say this : that in my opinion the jury have done no more than their duty. They have been extremely patient and careful in the case, and no one who has listened to the evidence can possibly doubt the correctness of the conclusion to which they have come. Everything that was possible was done for you by tne able counsel who have defended you, but an spite of that the jury have come to the one conclusion that was open to any men of common sense. Now, you have been convicted of very, very serious crimes. You are menlbers of an association which I do not hesitate to state, after the Tevelations in this case, is an association of criminals of the worst type — a hotbed of crime — and I hope that very strong and drastic step's will be taken to uproot that association. " If I may venture one suggestion it is this : That the Domain meetings attended by members of this association be peremptorily stopped, because it is perfectly clear that these meetings are simply held there for the purpose of recruiting young and ignorant men into the rants of this association. Only the other day two members of this association, in the most cowardly and cold-blooded <. "way, shot down a policeman, whose only fault was that he was doing his duty. These two men in the course of a few days will pay the last dread penalty of the law — sentence of death — and you may consider yourselves- very lucky that some of you are not in the same position, because you have not hesitated to devise a most devilish scheme, not merely for the destruction of property, but absolutely regardless of human life, which might have been destroyed, and would have been destroyed, no doubt, if the many attempts you made had been successful. You talk about your loyalty to your class. Do you think that you were serving that class by resorting to these diabolical plots? What would have been the result of your actions to that class if those plots had been successful? It would have meant this : that you would have deprived members of that class whom you say you represent of their employment. " You talk about class hatred. Who has brought or endeavored to bring about that class hatred? You yourselves, by your speeches in the Domain and by this pernicious literature that you have scattered abroad. I hope that" the police will see to it that every piece of that pernicious literature is destroyed. I hope the authorities will use their best endeavors to prevent any more of- it entering this country. One of your counsel described the crime with which you are charged as the act of devils, and I think he was right. Now, I am going to pass a sentence upon you that I do not think is- reasonably commensurate with the terrible crime of which you have been convicted, but I would rather lean to the side of mercy than vengeance. Nevertheless, I must pass a very heavy penalty upon you? and I am going to do it. Otherwise I would fail in my duty towards the whole of the public of New South Wales. " The sentence upon you, Glynn, Hamilton, M'Pherson, Teen, Beatty, Fagin, and Grant, upon each count of which you n^ve been- found guilty, is that, you be imprisoned and kept to hard labor in Parramatta Gaol. for the term of 15 years, the sentences to be concurrent. The sentence upon you, Reeve, Larkin, Besf|kt, and Moore, upon each count, is that you. be imprisoned and kept to hard labor in Bathurst Gaol for a period of 10 years, the sentences to be concurrent. The sentence upon you, King, is that you be imprisoned and kept to hard labor in Bathurst Gaol for a period of five years, the sentence ten commence at the expiration of the sentence you are now serving." The men were then removed from the dock. ■■•'■•■".•/
