On December 9th, the action by Mrs. Leigh against Mr. Gladstone as Home Secretary, and the Governor and Doctor of Winson Green Gaol, which as to decide the question of the legality of forcible feeding by the prison authorities, was tried before the Lord Chief Justice. It was pointed out on Mrs. Leigh's behalf that there was no rule or regulation to justify forcible feeding. Dr. Ernest Dormer Kirby, who had attended her on her release, testified that her condition was "distinctly grave," and that she had then weighed no more than six stone six pounds. Sir Victor Horsley, Mr. William Hugh Fenton, Senior Surgeon at the Chelsea Hospital for Women, and Mr. Mansell-Moullin all declared forcible feeding by means of the nasal tube to be painful, dangerous, injurious to health, and incapable of providing adequate nourishment. Dr. Maurice Craig, Consulting Physician of Welbach Street, and late Senior Assistant Physician at Bethlehem Hospital, who was called as a witness for the defence of Mr. Gladstone and of the officials, said that the operation of nasal feeding was "a simple one on the average." He considered it more dangerous to leave a patient starving than to overcome resistance.
Jessie Kenney as she tried to gain admittance to Mr. Asquith's meeting on Dec. 10, 1909 disguised as a telegraph boy
Sir Richard Douglas Powell, also called for the defence, admitted that he would not willingly resort to artificial feeding unless it was "quite necessary."
The Lord Chief Justice said that he should rule that it was the duty of the medical officer of the prison to take all reasonable steps to preserve Mrs. Leigh's life and to prevent her committing suicide. The only question he should leave to the jury would be whether the governor and doctor had taken the right steps. In his summing-up he assumed throughout that the jury must decide against Mrs. Leigh. They did as he directed, and she thereupon lost her case.
On January 19th, an action was begun by Miss Emily Wilding Davison against the visiting justices of Strangeways Gaol, Manchester, for having ordered that a hose-pipe should be played upon her. Judge Parry said that the use of the hose-pipe was both ineffective and unnecessary; that the duty of the visiting justices was to prevent any abuse of authority by the officials of the gaol; and to report and make suggestions. Therefore he held that they were not justified in ordering the assault, and decided the case in Miss Davison's favour. In assessing the damages, however, he said that he should take into account the fact that the hose-pipe incident had resulted in the prisoner's release before the expiration of her sentence; had provided her with "'copy' for a vivacious and entertaining account of the affair in the Press"; and had advertised her cause. Under these circumstances the damages should be no more than forty shillings, a nominal sum. The costs which were charged against the visiting magistrates were however placed on the highest scale because the case was held to be one of great importance.
Meanwhile there was no lack of turbulent scenes all over the country. Cabinet Ministers' meetings were daily being interrupted both by women who had succeeded in concealing themselves and by men who urged the question of Votes for Women on their behalf. When Mr. Lloyd George spoke at Reading two women started up from under the platform, during his speech. In the Queen's Hall, London, a few days afterwards, a forcible feeding tube was suddenly flung at him and he caught it in his hands. As the stewards fell upon the man who had thrown it, Mr. Lloyd George cried, "I do not envy him his paid job."
When speaking in the Louth Town Hall, Mr. Lloyd George was referring to the House of Lords as an "unrepresentative chamber" when a voice from the roof remarked, "So is the House of Commons as far as women are concerned." "I see some rats have got in; let them squeal, it does not matter," said the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and, amidst a terrible uproar, Miss Hudson and Miss Bertha Brewster were dragged down from amongst the rafters where they had lain concealed for many hours. They were taken to the police station, charged with infringing the Public Meeting Act, and detained in custody from Saturday until Monday, both in the same small cell, which contained only one narrow prison mattress and some rugs. On Monday the magistrate discharged them with a caution, complimenting them on their pluck. The Government was averse to allowing them to be let off so lightly, and on Wednesday Miss Brewster was rearrested for having broken her cell windows in Walton Gaol, Liverpool, in the previous August. She was sentenced to six weeks' imprisonment, but gave notice to appeal against the sentence on the ground that she had already been specially punished for this offence whilst in prison. On January 31st she was released in order that she might prosecute the appeal, and evidently thinking that the case hardly did him credit, Mr. Gladstone announced that she would not be asked to complete her term of imprisonment. The appeal was therefore dropped.
On December 20th, Mr. Asquith had arranged to speak both at Liverpool and Birkenhead, and owing to his desire to avoid the Suffragettes, detectives smuggled him across the river, amongst the luggage. Nevertheless outside the Liberal Club Miss Selina Martin and Miss Leslie Hall, who stood in the gutter, the one disguised as a match girl, and the other as an orange seller, spoke to him as he stepped from his motor car, and urged upon him the necessity for granting the franchise to women. He dashed away without answering, and in protest, and by way of warning, Miss Selina Martin tossed a ginger beer bottle into the empty car which he had left.