An attempt was made to carry out the meeting, and the following is a portion of The Times account of it. “Meanwhile vast crowds had collected in the neighbourhood of Hyde Park. A force of foot and mounted police, numbering 1600, or 1800, were assembled under the direction of Sir Richard Mayne and Captain Harris, and at 5 o’clock the gates were closed. Before that hour a considerable number of people had collected inside, in order to witness what was about to take place, and these were permitted to remain there. Outside, the throng was, as might be supposed, much greater. Masses of people had assembled at all the approaches. The Marble Arch was the centre of attraction, and for an hour or two previous to the proposed commencement of the demonstration, traffic was seriously impeded. The windows and balconies of the neighbouring houses were also crowded with spectators.
“Shortly after 7 o’clock Mr. Edmond Beales, Lieut. Col. Dickson, and other leading members of the Reform League, in a line of cabs which headed the Clerkenwell, Islington and other processions, advanced to the Arch; and, the sub-committee having succeeded in making a clear passage, Mr. Beales and his friends went up to the police, who were drawn up in line, staves in hand, some of them being mounted. The crowd immediately closed in, and endeavoured, by an ‘ugly rush,’ to effect admission. The police used their staves freely to defeat this attempt; and, it is stated that both Mr. Beales and Col. Dickson were struck in the scuffle. At any rate, after having been refused admission, and having raised the question in the form they desired, they went back to their vehicles, and, with some difficulty, managed to make their way through the crowd, in order to proceed to Trafalgar Square, there to hold the meeting, according to the programme which had been laid down.
“Printed bills were distributed among the various detachments as they came up from Clerkenwell, Southwark, Finsbury, etc., directing them not to attempt to force an entrance into the Park, but to proceed to Trafalgar Square. It is much easier, however, to collect throngs of people, than to keep them in leading-strings when collected; and a large portion of the ‘masses’ were not disposed to follow implicitly the instructions of their leaders. The gates, it is true, were strongly fortified, but to throw down the railings seemed a feasible undertaking, and this was promptly attempted. The police, indeed, hastened to every point that was attacked, and, for a short time, kept the multitude at bay; but their numbers were utterly insufficient to guard so long a line of frontier, and breach after breach was made, the stonework, together with the railings, yielding easily to the pressure of the crowd. The first opening was made in the Bayswater Road, where the police, rushing to the spot, prevented, for a time, any considerable influx of people; but they could not be ubiquitous, and along Park Lane especially a great extent of railing was speedily overturned, till in the end the crowd entered ad libitum.
“A good deal of scuffling attended these incursions. The police brought their truncheons into active use, and a number of the roughs were somewhat severely handled. One man, who was stated to be a mechanic, named Field, received serious injury on the head, and was carried off insensible to St. George’s Hospital. It is said that he had just thrown a brickbat at a policeman. A man named Tyler, living at New Road, Chelsea, also received blows on the head, and was taken to the hospital, as were, likewise, others, whose injuries were of a less serious character. The police, on the other hand, did not come off unscathed. One of them, named Penny, received a thrust in the side from an iron bar; another was knocked off his horse by sticks and stones, and several others sustained slight injuries. Stones were thrown at Sir Richard Mayne, who, as well as his men, was much hooted. Between forty and fifty persons were taken into custody in the vicinity of the Marble Arch, and about as many more at the other approaches. Many of the leaders of the crowd exerted themselves to prevent a breach of the peace, and Mr. Bradlaugh got considerably hustled for so doing, falling under the suspicion of being a Government spy.
“About eight o’clock, a company of the Grenadier Guards, and a troop of the Life Guards, entered the Park, but it was then too late to prevent the influx of people; for though the gates were still jealously guarded, breaches had been effected in every direction in the palings, and the military, who were loudly cheered by the crowd, confined themselves to manœuvres, the only effect of which was to oblige the mob occasionally to shift their position. The numbers in the park were, by this time, very large; and although, of course, there were a considerable number of ‘roughs,’ who look on the police as their natural enemies, many of the persons present appeared to be quiet and respectably-dressed people who had simply been attracted by curiosity, and showed no uproarious, nor even any political proclivities. Speeches were made at various spots, one of the orators being a Miss Harriet Laws, who delivered a very fervid address on the political and social rights of the people.”
The Times of next day (July 25th) says:—
“Yesterday morning Hyde Park presented, along its eastern extremity, a pitiable spectacle. Between the Marble Arch and Grosvenor Gate the railings were entirely demolished, and the flower-beds were ruined. Between the Grosvenor and Stanhope Gates, moreover, not a railing remained erect, those not actually levelled being forced considerably out of the perpendicular. This had been done out of mere wantoness, after ingress had been effected at other points, as was evident from the fact of the flowers and shrubs having escaped damage. On the north and south sides of the Park much damage had also been done, the railings having been overturned in numerous places. In many cases the masonry had given way, and was still attached to the ironwork, while in others the rails had been forced from their sockets; and one could not but reflect what appalling results might have ensued had the mob used them as weapons. The trees and shrubs were greatly injured, and, in fact, the appearance of the north-western portion of the Park was as if it had been overrun by an invading army. Waggons were engaged, yesterday, in removing the broken railings and shattered masonry, and a considerable sum will, certainly, be required to restore the Park to its original condition.”
