Newport Chartists Vol.13, p.15

Description

15

John Thomas of the Beaufort Iron Works

Miner states

On Sunday afternoon the 3rd November last about 3

o'Clock I went from my house together with David Jones
Shoemaker to Llangynyd to be out of the way of being pressed
by the Chartists who we had heard were going to meet that

night - we went to chapel there, and after the service we
went to the Lion beer house there - we both went into the kitchen
The Prisoner who was sitting down with a table before him -
On the Table were the drawings of 3 different shapes of pike
heads in Chalk - there were about 6 persons in the room at
the time besides the Prisoner, David Jones and myself - the
name of one of them is Edward Charles a Miner at the Beaufort
I do not know the others by name but should know them again
if I was to see them. - David Jones asked Prisoner what those
things meant (meaning the chalk drawings) - he said they were
the patterns of Chartist pikes & that he had made 53 of them & had
brought them up with him to the Rasau Lodge in Breconshire and that
he received 53/ for them - David Jones said he let them have the pikes very
cheap - he said 1/ a piece was enough for them D Jones then asked Prisoner
how he could have the conscience to make such things as those which might
perhaps kill his own neighbours & perhaps his family as well - Then he said he
was forced to do it - D Jones then asked him what was the reason he went on like
that & afterwards ran away from them - He said should get on very well
if they gained the Victory in Brecon as he should take and run his pike into a sheep
or fowl to get some blood on it to show that he had been with them & had run his pike into
somebody - Prisoner also said that he heard 3 men say in the Rassau Lodge, as they
were enough for Mr Summers Harford Mr Rosser at Ebbw Vale & the policeman at
Nantyglo - He went from these to another public House - he got home on Wednesday
morning - One of the Drawings I saw was like one of the pikes now produced - The
Prisoner told me that he made the pikes at his own house -

[In left margin]
[line 17] 53 Pikes

[line19] 53s/- 1s/- Each
[lines 9-13,26-27: vertical marks in emphasis]

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