Show disturbers DISTURB ERS PUNISHED at the city police court manchester may before mr G hadfield mr air J F furniss and mr R A armitage wm win henry nicholas living at bury new road and adolphus david bolitho Bolit bo living at 70 every street amcoats An coate coats appeared in answer to a summons charging them with creating a disturbance in a place of religious worship mr grace boote and edgar appeared for the complainant and the defendants were not represented mr grace said the complainant was mr george dark clark who was th the principal elder of the mormon church in city road bead manchester and the two defendants were charged with being guilty of riotous and violent behavior in a church of a certain religious denomination to wit the church of jesus jestis christ chrisi of latter day saints city road manchester the building was duly licensed for religious worship the officers of the church had for some time been considerably annoyed and the congregation disturbed by the two defendants entering the church during the service and creating a disturbance in the church they attempted to address the people in the church and were generally ene rally violent in the behavior ft t became so bad that the authorities ties of the church had complained to the police and they had obtained the assistance of a policeman olice to stand at the door for tae the last few sundays to prevent a recurrence of such scenes as this on the sunday in question may lath he seemed to have aurli some disturbance and called in the assistance of two plain clothes officers and those officers were in the church at the time of the disturbance mr grace then referred to a meeting which was held the previous sunday in stevenson square oldham street that meeting was addressed by the defendant nicholas who denounced the members of the mormon church and it was also suggested that vie the persons at that meeting should band together forthe for the purpose of breaking up the congregation of this church on the evening of the same day the policeman at the door was accosted by the two defendants who desired to go into the building they were accompanied by a considerable crowd of people the officer declined to let them in but ultimately two women who had been in the meeting came down and the two defendants thereupon claimed that there was room and they were allowed to pass up stairs they did so in a violent manner and sat down in the room wearing their hats on the same form as two officers in plain clothes I 1 in n a moment or two the defendant bo altho jumped up cupani aidi interrupted apted the preacher at the same time denouncing noun cing the whole body of mor mons in the church in very violent and abusive language in fact he behaved in such a manner that a panic was created in the church cli the women screaming and children being crushed one of the officers requested him to leave the church or he would be given into custody but this he declined to do and he was thereupon given into custody the defendant nicholas then said if you do take bolitho there will au be e murder or some words to that effect at the same time nicholas attempted to interfere with the arrest of bolitho and he was also taken into custody that sort of thing had bad occurred so frequently that he mr grace thought that if he proved the facts of the case to the satisfaction of the bench the full penalty ought to be inflicted bolitho was a preacher or a person traveling with an auti mormon show which was the property of a mr jarman who was traveling about the country getting up demonstrations against the mor mons MODS william sumner no 2 clare street rutland street hulme said helas he was in stevenson square oldham street on sunday afternoon last and his attention was directed to a large meeting which was being held in the square in we centre of which was a black flag with white letters and also a brass band from what he gathered from the speakers amongst whom was the defendant nicholas he learned there was a party of men called the latter day saints in city road who were missionaries sion aries jiries from salt lake city and that they were murderers aid villains they were also directed to look well after their daughters in fact the whole gist of the speeches seemed to be directed against the mormons cormons Mor mons who had their place of wor worshiping city road boad police Pollee constable judd gave evidence as to the two plainclothes plain clothes officers coming to his assistance on the day in question the two defendants fend ants came up accompanied by a large crowd he at first refused to allow them to enter the church as it was full but ultimately they were allowed to enter the officer then detailed the circumstances of the arrest of the prisoners he said he told mr dark clark that if he MY mr dark clark gave them into custody he would have to go to the station to prefer the charge against aai t them hem and he said he was quite will willing I 1 ng to do so as they had so much muc h trouble with them thein As the defendant bolitho was being taken to the station he kept shouting out jack the rippers dippers Rip pers murderers beware of the cormons mormons Mor mons which caused a grea great t crowd to assemble wm savile schofield of 19 dare clare street C on isaid he was a member of the city road mormon chapel which was a place duly licensed for public worship he attended divine service there on sunday evening and after the prelim inary nary exercises he be was asked to address the meeting he had been speaking about a quarter of an hour when ne he heard a commotion downstairs and in rushed the defendants fend ants apts in such a manner as to cause all the people to rise to their feet bolitho began to speak and said the church officers were murderers and impostors he was arrested and nicholas grasped the officers officer Is coat saying if you take him there will be murder here 11 and in consequence of that tle the other constables arrested him mr bolitho to the witness will you tell their worships what divine service at your so called church consists of mr grace what has that to do with the case mr le court magistrates clerk this is a place to worship and you heave no right to disturb the services it is not necessary to go into the tenets of the belief of either party that has nothing to do with it mr bolitho 1 I am charged with breaking up a religious gand I 1 should like to prove that this is not a place of worship and that this mormon religion is a system of polygamy and murder mr le court we have nothing tp to do with that you must keep to the disturbance other corroborative evidence having been given mr bolitho in his defense said he knew of many young men and young women who were about to be borne away to salt lake city and he deemed it his duty to go to the church and try and stop them from going when he be got inside he heard one of the elders of the so called religious meeting challenge anyone to prove that they did not preach the real doctrines of the bible he instantly got up lip and accepted the challenge saying he was quite willing to enter into a dis cassion for half an hour he was then arrested and ejected from the room on his way to the station he be admitted that he did say to every woman hemet he met I 1 beware of these mormon jack the rippers dippers and murderers I 1 mr nicholas asked the permission of the bench to read three lines from the articles of the mormon faith which would show the character of the so called religion mr le court we have nothing to do with that mr nicholas said that in the report of the governor of utah territory for 1888 it was stated that the elders of the mormon church are probably probably ably as astute a gang of diels aels as ever preyed upon their fel low creatures 1 I the defendants called one or two witnesses to prove that they only rose in answer to the challenge as to 1 the authenticity of the doctrines preached by the mormons cormons Mor mons the Tha bench said that whatever opinion on the defendants in might hold respecting spec ting ng the religion of the complainants they had no do right to disturb the services of the church and they would be fined fl ned and costs and extra costs manchester evening news |